TIM Enterprise and ANCI (national association of Italian municipalities) presented the Smart City model today in Rome during the event ‘The Italy of smart, sustainable cities: digital and implementation tools at the service of the local PA’. The aim was to illustrate the latest technological innovations and opportunities available to local administrations in Lazio for urban and local settings: more liveable, sustainable and safe urban spaces, thanks to new technologies that can also promote their wealth of cultural and artistic heritage.
The event took place in the President’s hall at the ANCI headquarters in Rome and was attended by Antonio Decaro, ANCI President and Mayor of Bari, Stefano Locatelli, ANCI Vice President, Dario Nardella, ANCI Metropolitan Cities Coordinator and Mayor of Florence and Elio Schiavo, Chief Enterprise and Innovative Solutions Officer at TIM, who illustrated the prospects for developing the ‘cities of the future’, emphasising TIM Enterprise’s focus on this fast-growing sector.
The initiative aimed to demonstrate how innovation at the service of local PAs can accelerate the development of sustainable, smart cities and achieving the goals of the NRRP, to highlight the impact of choices favouring the creation of a smart city on the urban environment and the lives of citizens, and to provide assessment tools enabling public administrators to make effective decisions.
According to the estimates of Centro Studi TIM, investments in ICT solutions for smart cities will grow to approximately €1.6 billion by 2027, whereas total spending on smart cities will climb to more than $1 trillion. In particular, over the 2023–27 period, Italian smart city applications based on 5G, IoT and artificial intelligence will contribute to a total reduction in urban traffic costs of approximately €6.5 billion and in urban pollution costs of more than €400 million thanks to better planning of both public and private transport and the movement of tourists. The new technologies will also lead to an annual reduction in CO₂ emissions of approximately 650,000 tonnes, to direct the tourism industry and optimise services for the public.
Antonio Decaro, Anci President and Mayor of Bari said: “Digitization means bridging the digital divide at the infrastructure level that characterizes our municipalities and which we are working on, also thanks to National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) funds and synergies with private partners such as TIM, but first and foremost it means improving services and citizens’ quality of life, simplifying and speeding up local PA and contributing to the development and cities’ growth. The digital transition and investment in technology is the future real challenge for municipalities and local authorities. The path ANCI shared with TIM is intended to provide municipalities with the tools to enable public administrators to make effective decisions capable of generating value and opportunities for the territories. It is a path that has not yet ended and that we will continue to support as ANCI ".
“Smart Cities are at the heart of our strategy and we offer local administrations our technologies and expertise to design the cities of the future and achieve important goals of economic development, cost control and more efficient processes,” said Elio Schiavo, Chief Enterprise & Innovative Solutions Officer at TIM. “We are convinced that in a few years we will witness a major process of transformation in cities as they adopt innovative services that will enhance dialogue with the public, administration processes, transport and safety. This is thanks to our innovative digital platforms that integrate artificial intelligence, IoT, cloud, cybersecurity, fibre and 5G connectivity, incorporating the best proprietary technologies and contributions from start-ups, scale-ups and the world of innovation. In every city, technology will also play a fundamental role in promoting the cultural and artistic dimension of locations, because the beauty and history of Italian cities can take on new life and fresh perspectives precisely thanks to innovation.”
The meeting was attended, among others, by Stefano Bigiotti, ANCI Lazio Vice President and Mayor of Valentano, Federica Battafarano, Deputy Mayor of Cerveteri and ANCI Youth Lazio Coordinator, Michela Pianetta, ANCI Piedmont Vice President with responsibility for Innovation and Smart Cities, Sabina Strazzullo, National Institutional Affairs & Trade Associations for TIM and Francesco Meneghetti, CEO of Mindicity.
After today’s stage in the project, following those in Milan, Bari, Catania, Naples and Padua, it will continue with other regional meetings for the whole of 2024.
Rome, 22 February 2024
