Singapore, Seoul, and London have been named as the leaders in the second edition of the Top 50 Smart City Government rankings published by global consulting company Eden Strategy Institute on March 31.

The study focuses specifically on the role of city governments as a key driver for smart city development. Beyond the efficacy and outcomes of technological solutions, the study hopes to shed light on the importance of strategy, leadership, people-centricity, policies, ecosystem, incentives, and talent in determining the success and effectiveness of technologies deployed in smart cities.

More than 230 cities were evaluated and examined by Eden Strategy Institute, and city governments were invited to a Call for Proposals to submit supporting details, reports, and outcomes. Interviews were later conducted with smart city officials to validate facts and learn more in-depth about their unique challenges and pathways.

Barcelona, Helsinki, New York City, Montreal, Shanghai, Vienna and Amsterdam rounded out the top 10.

Researchers assessed cities based on ten indicators, including vision, leadership, talent readiness and effective smart city financing and policy models.

The 2020/2021 edition also highlighted a regional showcase of emerging smart cities which were not featured in the Top 50 rankings.

Da Nang - the only Vietnamese locality- made it into the list of emerging smart cities which launched unique and creative smart city initiatives, even though they were not part of the Top 50.

Other cities entered this list included Banyuwangi and Semarang (Indonesia), Penang (Malaysia), Khon Kaen (Thailand), Munich (Germany), Geneva (Switzerland), Manchester (the UK), Orlando and Pittsburgh (the USA).

Reporting by Khang Ninh – Translating by H.L