The Asian Development Bank (ADB) yesterday launched a hackathon to find digital solutions to make cities more livable, with $20,000 in seed money at stake.
The hackathon, Smart Cities Datathon 2021—Building Back Smarter: Digital Solutions for Livable Cities, is under ADB’s ASEAN Australia Smart Cities Trust Fund, which was set up in 2019, with co-financing from the Australian government, to help ASEAN countries build livable cities that are green, competitive, inclusive, and resilient.
In launching the hackathon, Joris Van Etten, ADB senior urban development specialist, said the hackathon is open to startups, students, research organizations, independent researchers, and corporate partners. “We challenge innovators from around the world to tackle the idea of how to build back smarter and how to use digital solutions to make cities more livable.”
He said the winner can use the $20,000 seed money to test and adapt their ideas in real-world settings.
The solutions should focus on three areas:
• Ensuring vulnerable groups get reliable access to urban services and amenities;
• Ensuring the voice of the most vulnerable will be heard and taken into consideration in the decision-making process; and
• Improving vulnerable groups' financial access through digital solutions, like fintech smart payments, online loans, among others.
With cities around the world still struggling with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, they will have to develop new means of safeguarding citizens’ health and livelihoods in both the shorter- and longer-term, which takes into consideration the need for social distancing, online services, and protective measures for the most vulnerable groups.
Van Etten hopes some of the challenges facing cities will be addressed by the solutions pitched by hackathon participants.
The hackathon was launched at the second annual Southeast Asia Development Symposium, which opened yesterday.
It is open for applications until 31 May.
After a round of screening and mentoring, four to five finalists will be evaluated by a panel of judges made up of representatives from ADB, the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Smart City Council, ASEAN, and UN-Habitat.
Applicants are encouraged to "think global" with their ideas and solutions, with the objective of testing and scaling the solutions.
The ASEAN Australia Smart Cities Trust Fund supports cities with capacity development assistance and partnerships. ADB manages the trust fund, which has $14 million in funding.
