Smart cities represent a new path to achieving new urbanization, a new driving force for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2020, and a new growth point under the new normal of the economy. To promote the healthy and rapid development of smart cities in China, this author believes that future efforts should focus on ten key elements.
First, there must be alignment of goals. Smart cities embody urban modernization and represent a new characteristic of urban development models under new historical conditions. Therefore, the development direction and goals of smart cities must be highly integrated with the goals of new urbanization and the comprehensive realization of a moderately prosperous society by 2020, as determined by the Party Central Committee and the State Council. Not only should the strategic directions be aligned, but the key tasks should also be aligned. Goals, directions, and priorities cannot be formed solely based on the concept of smart cities.
Second, comprehensive functionality. Domestic and international experience shows that the advancement of smart cities must focus on improving urban functions and addressing key issues in urban development. Successful approaches prioritize solving the most pressing concerns of residents, such as difficulties in transportation, access to healthcare, and home-based elderly care, as well as addressing public service issues related to environmental protection, municipal management, social security, equitable distribution of educational resources, and government services.
Third, urban integration. City clusters and urban integration are common trends in urban development both domestically and internationally. The development of smart cities must adapt to this change and effectively address the series of new problems brought about by urban integration in different locations, as well as make good plans in areas such as transportation, healthcare, education, environmental protection, and insurance.
Fourth is infrastructure. A key indicator of urban modernization is the modernization of infrastructure. Urban infrastructure integrated into smart cities is a product of the high degree of integration between industrialization and informatization. Cities that prioritize building first-class urban information infrastructure that is highly integrated with industrial-era infrastructure have taken the initiative in developing smart cities.
Fifth, cloud computing. The development of smart cities places increasingly higher demands on computing resources. The current fragmented computing resources across different departments and fields cannot meet the needs of smart city development. Constructing a new urban computing resource architecture centered on cloud computing to improve efficiency, save costs, and ensure security is the most important technological component for smart city development.
Sixth, big data. Deeply integrated smart city applications require increasing information support. As smart cities develop, more and more information will accumulate; the quantity and quality of this information become another key technological challenge for smart city development. We should focus on the key priorities and overall planning of smart city development to effectively build and utilize big data.
Seventh, an evaluation system. A scientific and fair evaluation system is needed to measure the level and quality of smart city development. Establishing a scientific and practical evaluation system can guide the development direction of smart cities, identify major problems in the development process, and truly serve as a yardstick to measure whether smart cities are progressing on a scientific track.
Eighth, citizen participation. The core of a city is its citizens, and the primary development goal is for all citizens to share the fruits of smart city development. To achieve this goal, enhancing citizen participation and their capacity for participation should be a central task in smart city development.
Ninth, the market mechanism. The construction, operation, and maintenance of smart cities not only require financial investment but also a sustainable mechanism to achieve stable operation. This mechanism is the market mechanism. Leveraging the role of enterprises and the wisdom of entrepreneurs through the market mechanism is key to the sustainable development of smart cities. Even for government urban management and public services included in smart city initiatives, efforts should be made to choose PPP (Public-Private Partnership) models to reduce direct government investment, operation, and management.
Tenth, deepen reform. The key goals of building smart or intelligent healthcare , transportation, education, urban management, environmental protection, water management, power grids, and elderly care—all these require changes to the original management systems, regulations, and operational models, and all involve reform tasks. Therefore, deepening reform is both the driving force and an inevitable requirement for the development of smart cities.
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