Amin Faraji and Amin Gharibi, President and Vice President of Smart City Research Center of Iran give us the keys to the great advance in this field
Iran is having an exemplary smart transformation. The government, cities, organizations, and companies are making a great effort for an advanced and inclusive country project. The Smart City Research Center has had a lot to do with this and its president, Amin Faraji, and its vice president, Amin Gharibi, answer our questionnaire.
1- What bases does the Smart City Research Center of Iran propose for the Smart transformation of the country in the coming years?
An important issue that the Smart City Research Center of Iran is pursuing to be done in Iran is the discussion of compiling a national smart city document in Iran. Also, the Smart City Research Center of Iran is compiling a document of smart transformation in different cities of Iran in order to compile a roadmap for the realization of smart transformation in each city based on physical, social, cultural, political, and economic structures.
2- How is the collaboration between institutions and companies on sustainability and digitization?
At Smart City Research Center of Iran, we are creating a wide network of smart city and smart transformation players and stockholders in Iran and internationally to form a knowledge network in the field of smart city, and so far we have succeeded to companies and collections Identify various public and private companies and successful and active startups in this field and create a platform for cooperation.
3- You, who know the efforts of the different cities, in which order are your citizen priorities?
According to the studies we have had in the Smart City Research Center of Iran, Iranian cities have entered the phases of realization of the electronic city for about the last two decades and after that, have entered the phases of realization of the smart city. Cities such as Mashhad, Tehran, Shiraz, Tabriz, Yazd, Urmia, and other cities have done well but are still far from the smart city. During these years, most of the measures taken by Iranian cities are in the field of infrastructure and technology, and the issue of citizen participation and citizen involvement in the city has been ignored. It can be said that most of the measures are top-down and because of this, no significant achievement has been achieved.
4- How are the advances in Artificial Intelligence?
The use of artificial intelligence in some projects has started in the past few years but has been less seen at the macro level and urban management. In fact, the widespread and efficient use of artificial intelligence has not yet been seen in projects. But very successful private companies and startups have been formed in this field that are providing services to urban projects, and the achievements of using artificial intelligence in Iran will be presented soon.
5- Is there an important start-up movement in your country and do you see young people committed to the future?
According to global statistics, Iran is one of the most innovative countries in the world in recent years, and in the field of startups and supporting start-up businesses, very good measures have been taken at the level of governance and the private sector. For example, in Tehran, Shiraz, Mashhad, and many other cities, innovation factories have been built and Azadi Innovation Factory is the largest start-up center in the Middle East and North Africa, located in an area of 18,500 square meters west of the capital. Also, several venture capital centers, acceleration centers, and startup studios have been established in Iranian cities and support startups.
6- Do you consider it essential that the Smart achievements from your country are known beyond its borders?
One of the challenges today in Iran is the weak connection with other countries in the world and the fact that startups and projects operating in the field of smart city and smart transformation have not entered the global market. We at Smart City Research Center of Iran are looking to facilitate this connection. In fact, we are trying to inform other countries by acknowledging the measures taken in Iran that there are great capacities and potentials for international cooperation and we can expand this cooperation.
