Date: 13 – 17 November 2017
Delegates from Ho Chi Minh City:
- Mr. Duong Anh Duc, Director General, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Information and Telecommunication
- Mr. Hoang Tung, Deputy Director, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Planning and Architecture
- Mr. Ngo Vo Ke Thanh, Director, Research laboratories Centre, Saigon Hi-Tech Park
- Mrs. Dong Thi Ngai Lan, Head of Political & Economic Section, Department of External Relations Ho Chi Minh City
Note: Prior to the bilateral meetings, delegates from HCMC participated at the World Cities mid-term conference in Barcelona on Monday 13 November 2017. This included participation at the Smart City Expo in Barcelona on Tuesday 14 November 2017.
Summary of the meetings in Kosice
Delegates from HCMC started with a guided walking tour through the city centre, in which Radoslav Jenčuš, Assistant to the Mayor of Kosice, introduced the main landmark buildings of the city (including some historical monuments). Delegates then met with the Mayor Mr. Richard Rasi and the Deputy Mayor Mrs. Renata Lenartova. In this meeting both sides further introduced their cities and exchanged views with regard to the implementation of pilot projects in the areas of ICT, innovation and smart energy systems.
HCMC delegates then visited the energy company VSE (East Slovak Energy), from the RWE group. Executives from the company introduced the smart metering solutions and the smart electricity distribution utilised in Kosice. They explored the possibility of piloting part of these systems in the Saigon High Tech Park.
Delegates then also met with representatives from DPMK – the city owned public transport company. Discussions centred on developing a smart city approach and applying solutions especially in the reconstruction of the light rail (tram). Experts from Kosice also introduced mobile applications developed for the public transport and shared views on piloting electro buses in the city.
One of the areas identified in the first meeting between HCMC and Kosice was the cooperation on cultural exchange and tourism. Therefore, HCMC delegates also met with Kosice city officials responsible for managing the European Capital City of Culture 2013 and the focal point of UNESCO`s Creative Cities programme, which awarded Kosice as a City of Media Arts. Experts discussed about the sustainability of these cultural flagship campaigns and the management support provided by the City Council. They evaluated the coaching of HCMC officials by Kosice cultural development experts in order to develop a cultural branding campaign.
Delegates then visited the Technical University of Kosice and its Start-Up Park Technicom. The centre – which has been co-financed with European Regional Development Funds (ERDF) – runs a series of incubation and acceleration programmes for start-ups from several areas, with a focus on ICT. Experts from both sides discussed about piloting joint start-up competitions of innovative ideas, projects and business solutions in Kosice and HCMC in parallel. They also evaluated the development of bilateral internships programmes with funding support from the public and private sector. Start-up centres from both sides could offer free spaces, mentoring, professional laboratories, support when elaborating business plan, acquiring partners and searching for potential investors.
Next steps:
- Coordination via e-mail and Skype calls
- Mission to HCMC in 1Q2018
- Possible MoU between University of Kosice (Start-Up Centre) and Saigon High-Tech Park
Impressions
