China allocates $8b fund for smart cities
The Strategic Alliance of Smart City Industrial Technology Innovation, an organisation under the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, will create a fund worth 50 billion yuan ($8.05 billion). The gigantic fund, to be formed by June 2014, will be used to pay for programmes including smart city traffic systems and the Internet of Things.
The alliance was established in October 2013 to accelerate the country’s smart city initiatives. The fact that a six-month-old organisation can wield such an enormous power in terms of investment volume reflects the Chinese government’s commitment to smart city development. A manager with the state council in charge of the Internet of Things said, however, China’s level in smart city technology still remains at its infancy and it would take at least five to ten years to see any meaningful development in the Internet of Things.
Nonetheless, billions of dollars of investment money will no doubt make a difference. The more money there is in the project, the less uncertainty in the whole smart city program so that private initiatives can flourish without worrying about the program would end abruptly.
In particular, since 2013 the central government has increasingly taken up the smart city initiatives from local city and provincial governments. Under the 12th five-year economic development plan (2011-2015), the central government will build as many as 320 smart cities across the country with more than $48.3-billion investment.
Even though the Chinese government set the time schedule by 2015 under its economic development plan, the pace of the smart city construction may be faster than that. According to the 21st Century Business Herald newspaper, the number of China’s pilot smart cities is almost 200.
Pan Yunhe, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that as many as 230 Chinese city authorities have requested to build smart cities in their jurisdiction as of the end of 2012, with the combined investment sum reaching $322 billion.
The Internet of Things industry is also seeing a fast growth, as it is a cornerstone technology of smart cities. As of 2013, China’s Internet of Things industry is estimated at $96.6 billion and is expected to grow up to $161 billion by 2015. Of late, an increasing number of developing countries is plunging into the initiative.
According to Korea’s National IT Industry Promotion Agency, the number of smart city initiatives across the world is more than 600. It contrasts well with 100 or so projects underway only five years ago.
Today, it’s not just limited to developed countries like the US and Japan and regions like the European Union, but also includes India, Vietnam, Indonesia, as well as China. Still, the lion’s share (84 per cent) is still accounted for by five countries including the US, European countries, Japan, China and Korea.
The Strategic Alliance of Smart City Industrial Technology Innovation, an organisation under the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, will create a fund worth 50 billion yuan ($8.05 billion). The gigantic fund, to be formed by June 2014, will be used to pay for programmes including smart city traffic systems and the Internet of Things. The alliance was established in October 2013 to accelerate the country’s smart city initiatives. The fact that a six-month-old organisation can wield such an enormous power in terms of investment volume reflects the Chinese government’s commitment to smart city development. A manager with the...
The Strategic Alliance of Smart City Industrial Technology Innovation, an organisation under the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, will create a fund worth 50 billion yuan ($8.05 billion). The gigantic fund, to be formed by June 2014, will be used to pay for programmes including smart city traffic systems and the Internet of Things.
The alliance was established in October 2013 to accelerate the country’s smart city initiatives. The fact that a six-month-old organisation can wield such an enormous power in terms of investment volume reflects the Chinese government’s commitment to smart city development. A manager with the state council in charge of the Internet of Things said, however, China’s level in smart city technology still remains at its infancy and it would take at least five to ten years to see any meaningful development in the Internet of Things.
Nonetheless, billions of dollars of investment money will no doubt make a difference. The more money there is in the project, the less uncertainty in the whole smart city program so that private initiatives can flourish without worrying about the program would end abruptly.
In particular, since 2013 the central government has increasingly taken up the smart city initiatives from local city and provincial governments. Under the 12th five-year economic development plan (2011-2015), the central government will build as many as 320 smart cities across the country with more than $48.3-billion investment.
Even though the Chinese government set the time schedule by 2015 under its economic development plan, the pace of the smart city construction may be faster than that. According to the 21st Century Business Herald newspaper, the number of China’s pilot smart cities is almost 200.
Pan Yunhe, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that as many as 230 Chinese city authorities have requested to build smart cities in their jurisdiction as of the end of 2012, with the combined investment sum reaching $322 billion.
The Internet of Things industry is also seeing a fast growth, as it is a cornerstone technology of smart cities. As of 2013, China’s Internet of Things industry is estimated at $96.6 billion and is expected to grow up to $161 billion by 2015. Of late, an increasing number of developing countries is plunging into the initiative.
According to Korea’s National IT Industry Promotion Agency, the number of smart city initiatives across the world is more than 600. It contrasts well with 100 or so projects underway only five years ago.
Today, it’s not just limited to developed countries like the US and Japan and regions like the European Union, but also includes India, Vietnam, Indonesia, as well as China. Still, the lion’s share (84 per cent) is still accounted for by five countries including the US, European countries, Japan, China and Korea.
