President of Kazakhstan Points to Canada As Exemplary Intelligent Community Leader

The President of one of the world’s largest countries said that his capital city should aspire to Canadian

standards of excellence in developing towards Intelligent Community status.

Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev stated that Astana needed become an Intelligent

Community at the top level of the international spectrum, referencing Canada as a place to emulate:

“Astana should be on a par with cities in Canada and with Singapore,” stated President Nazarbayev.

Kazakhstan is one of the ten largest countries

in the world. Bigger than Europe, its GDP has

been growing at some 13%/year until

recently; in 2012 its GDP grew by 5%. The

country is the second largest oil producer in

central Asia. It is receptive to high

technology; the country is the site of the

Baikonur Cosmodrome where man first

launched into space.

“For the President of Kazakhstan to

acknowledge us at the top of the Intelligent

Cities is a remarkable achievement for

Canada,” said i-CANADA Chair Bill Hutchison. “We have been well-regarded for our initiatives around

the world, and it is gratifying to see that the message is being so well received.”

Mr. Hutchison will be speaking at a major conference in Astana in the coming month. The organizers

also called on Brenda Halloran, Mayor of Waterloo, to provide insights on how to become the world’s

“Most Intelligent Community” - a title that Waterloo earned in 2007.

“We are also pleased that other international initiatives are proceeding well,” added Hutchison.

Recently i-CANADA leaders met with The Honourable David Willetts, U.K. Minister of State for

Universities and Science, United Kingdom, and agreed that i-CANADA and the UK Smart Cities Forum

would create an Executive Working Group for Canada-U.K. Smart City Trade and Collaboration on

standards and other initiatives. Members of the joint organization will work together to capture as

large a portion as possible of the global $1 trillion market for Smart/Intelligent Community products and

services.

For the original article mentioning Canada, google to this link and click on “translate”.

http://www.zakon.kz/4619832-astana-prevratilas-v-krupnyjj.html