By Alice Chambers |
Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) 2025 opened at Fira de Barcelona in Spain with an urgent message from city leaders and policymakers: the time for cities is now.
Ugo Valenti, managing director of the event, reflected on how far SCEWC has come since its first edition.
“From 2011 to today, we have grown into a global movement,” he said, noting that the congress now has editions in other cities around the world, and how 1,200 exhibitors, 900 cities and 25,000 professionals have gathered at this year’s event with one shared belief that “the time for cities is now.”
Valenti emphasised that a smart city is one that helps people live better, underlining the congress’s sustainability commitment by ensuring all materials used are reusable and recyclable.
“Let’s build the cities we all believe in because the time for cities is not tomorrow, the time for cities is today,” he said.
Marc Rozendal, CEO of EIT Urban Mobility and president of Tomorrow.Mobility World Congress outlined the year’s theme, “move better”, which focuses on improving mobility in urban areas. He explained how Tomorrow.Mobility centres on three areas including education, innovation and investment.
Next, Jordi Valls, deputy mayor of Barcelona City Council, described the current moment as one of both challenge and opportunity.
“We are living in complex times,” he said. “Across the globe, temperatures are rising, living is becoming more expensive… cities have an enormous responsibility. The debate about the future is debate about the future of the world. Barcelona becomes that stage where the future of cities is showcased and discussed.”
Valls also reflected on what truly defines a smart city. It is not about wealth, popularity or novelty, he said, but about purpose and inclusivity. Smart cities “foster an inclusive economy,” “implement actions to achieve net-zero emissions” and are “places that innovate technology.” He noted that Barcelona is the Spanish city with the largest number of employees in the technology sector and ranks among the top 10 best cities to live in worldwide.
Maimunah Binti Mohd Sharif, mayor of Kuala Lumpur City Council in Malaysia, described the congress as “the global stage where innovation comes to life.”
She highlighted the critical role cities play in meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. “It is clear we need to get our cities right if we want to achieve our sustainability goals,” she said.
According to Sharif, Kuala Lumpur is transforming “from a liveable city to a loveable city,” with initiatives such as targeting 70 per cent public transport use and providing up to 5,000 affordable homes.
For Sharif, technology is only one part of the picture: “A smart city is not a collection of technologies but a city that protects human dignity. Southeast Asian cities are ready to act but we must act together and align with the global agenda. Let’s aspire to inspire before we expire.”
Belit Onay, mayor and vice president of the City of Hannover, Germany, praised Barcelona as “a remodel of urban development” and shared his city’s efforts to create cultural meeting places for a growing and diverse population.
“Smart cities see data and technology as part of the solution, not the problem,” said Onay. “Only if we lay the groundwork today to be AI-ready can we respond to challenges. Cooperation nationally and internationally is the success to smart cities.”
Maria Galino Garcia-Delgado, secretary of digital policies for the Government of Catalonia, also spoke about the importance of ethics and collaboration in digital transformation:
“We live in a complex world,” she said. “Security is never warranted. The rise of technology reminds us that we must continue learning, strengthening our digital technologies. Digital transformation must always put people at the centre. Nobody should be left behind in a digital society.”
As the congress began, the opening session highlighted one key message that cities are not just where the world’s challenges are felt most strongly; they are where the solutions need to begin.