Dubai, November 10, 2019 – Smart Dubai is heading to Barcelona on November 19-21, 2019, to take part in the ninth annual Smart City Expo World Congress, leading a delegation of eight Dubai Government entities.

A premier annual gathering of smart-city leaders, the Expo offers Smart Dubai an ideal platform to showcase the emirate’s smart-city accomplishments over the past year, as well as the outcomes of the collaboration among all government and private-sector stakeholders in the emirate, in line with the directives of the UAE’s wise leadership.

“We, at Smart Dubai, have made a commitment to take part in prominent and influential international events such as the Smart City Expo World Congress, which bring together experts and decision makers from the global smart-city sector,” said Her Excellency Dr Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, Director General of Smart Dubai. “These gatherings offer an unparalleled platform for us to explore breakthroughs made by our peers around the world, all while showcasing the rapid smart transformations we have been making on our home turf, as we press on with our mission to make Dubai the happiest and smartest city on Earth.”

As a part of the Congress’ conference agenda, H.E. Dr Aisha will be participating in a plenary session on Tuesday, November 19, titled ‘How to Make Governments More Agile, Transparent and Participative?’, while H.E. Younus Al Nasser, Assistant Director General of Smart Dubai, CEO of Smart Dubai Data, will be participating in a panel discussion later that same day, exploring ‘How can cities prepare for the upcoming AI?’

The Smart Dubai pavilion at the Smart City Expo World Congress will introduce visitors to several of Smart Dubai’s leading initiatives and services. Smart Dubai is set to showcase the impact its Dubai Paperless Strategy has had on the Dubai Government, where 15 entities had already cut their paper consumption by a significant 65.53% by June 2019, while 10 additional entities have joined the effort with an objective to reduce their consumption by 50% by April 2020. The Strategy seeks to eliminate all applicable government paper transactions by 2021.

The display will also introduce visitors to the DubaiNow platform and application – Dubai’s one-stop shop for all smart government services – and Dubai Pulse, the data platform designed to be the backbone of the emirate’s digital transformation. Smart Dubai will be showcasing its efforts and projects in the Blockchain sector, in addition to UAEPASS – the national digital identity platform that provides access to government and private-sector services with a single set of login details, and allows users to digitally sign official documents – and Dubai Careers, the employment platform connecting applicants with potential government employers.

Smart Dubai will also be showcasing its Ethical AI Principles And Guidelines, developed to set clear guidelines on the ethical use of Artificial Intelligence, and prevent having a fragmented, incoherent approach to ethics. Additionally, the pavilion includes a display on Smart Dubai’s Smart Cities Global Network (SCGN), the largest international network of smart city stakeholders.

The eight entities joining Smart Dubai at the Smart City Expo World Congress will be: DP World, Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Roads and Transportation Authority (RTA), Dubai Municipality, Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA), Dubai Police, Expo 2020 Bureau (District 2020), and International Humanitarian City. Each entity will be highlighting some of its most recent and most prominent smart services at the Smart Dubai pavilion at the event.

DP World will be showcasing its Twist Lock Robot service, which is a smart robotic arm that sorts the various types of locks on containers to remove them without human intervention. It will also be presenting its service enabling Unified Customer Registration through Blockchain. The Dubai Health Authority will be introducing its mobile application, which seeks to provide access to all services via a single app, including access to appointments, Dubai Medical Registry Service, blood donations, and consultations with doctors via video calls, among others. The Roads and Transportation Authority will be introducing its RTA Enterprise Chatbot Through WhatsApp, its initiative to use AI in the Happiness Meter, Salama Magazine app (an educational traffic awareness mobile application targeting children 4-14), and new features in the S’hail app, which offers a live-location map for various types of public transportation.

The Dubai Municipality will be presenting three new services: Kharetati, a smart application that provides updated location maps, and allows users to explore plots of land, and learn about construction code violations. The Municipality will also be showcasing its automated Enterprise Inspection System, and Dubai BPS, a mobile application to apply for building permits. Meanwhile, DEWA will be presenting its upgraded website, mobile application, and Smart Response service, where users can report, track, and solve any technical incidents regarding their electricity and water supply.

Dubai Police will be showcasing its mobile application, as well as the Smart Police Station (an integrated interactive self-service police station) and Sail Safely Video, an application where users can register their planned cruises for a reliable communication line and distress response from Dubai Police. The Expo 2020 Bureau will have its own section of the pavilion, using interactive visuals to give visitors a tour of District 2020 – the future of the Expo 2020 Dubai site – which is a world-class mixed-use development designed to promote an innovation-driven business ecosystem and balanced lifestyle. Last but not least, the International Humanitarian City will showcase its Humanitarian Logistics Databank, an information-sharing platform dedicated to emergency preparedness and response. It enables collecting and sharing real-time information on prepositioned aid and humanitarian assets.

The Smart City Expo World Congress 2019 brings together smart-city stakeholders – from technology industries to policy-makers and entrepreneurs – to work together towards a sustainable and inclusive future. To this end, the event will focus on five main tracks touching on the most pressing issues facing cities: Digital Transformation, Urban Environment, Mobility, Governance & Finance, and Inclusive & Sharing Cities.