At SCEKL2025’s main panel, I shared why technical optimisation alone cannot deliver deep urban change. True progress demands governance reform, systemic thinking, and data frameworks enabling federated, people-centric smart cities. This moment reflects a shift—from efficiency to transformation—in how we design the future of urban ecosystems.
At #SCEKL25 🇲🇾’s panel discussion (day 3), I emphasised a crucial #insight: purely technical solutions typically yield only modest improvements—often 10-15% better than the status quo. As the strategist Michael Porter reminds us: efficiency alone does not constitute a true #strategy.
Meaningful urban transformation requires alignment with #SDG11 and a shift beyond incremental gains toward systemic, #holistic change. This means moving beyond siloed management towards #integrated approaches that recognise the interconnected nature of decarbonisation, circular economy, and public health.
To attract long-term investment and achieve sustainable impact, we must fundamentally reform #governance—especially data governance, which has become a central pillar. Multi-level governance, inspired by European #subsidiarity principles, offers a tested framework to coordinate and empower actors from local to regional levels, enabling dynamic, people-centric #smart cities.
This is not about slogans or superficial efficiency gains. It is about structuring #deep, integrated strategies to deliver the transformative #impact our public-private-people driven urban #ecosystems urgently demand. At the core lies robust data governance—anchored in regulatory frameworks—as the foundation for federated, open, and interoperable urban data platforms driving effective local #digitaltwins.
As an international expert collaborating on #ERIA’s #ASEAN regional study*, I witness firsthand how these lessons could shape the region’s sustainable and integrated future.
It’s time to move from quick fixes to transformative #governance for real, lasting impact !
* « Digital Twins for Deep Sustainability », presented the same day by Anbumozhi Venkatachalam (ERIA)
