Today, the
Mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin, spoke at the World Cities Summit in Singapore.
The large international forum brought together about 130 participants from 80
cities– heads of governments, statesmen, members of public organizations,
scientists and entrepreneurs.
The World Cities
Summit, which is held every two years, is one of the largest event in discussing
urban issues and the development of municipalities. This year, Russia was
represented by only two cities – Moscow and Kazan, as the winners of the Lee
Kuan Yew World City Prize. The summit brought together about 130 participants from
more than 80 cities.
Ilsur
Metshin spoke at the section “The revival of our cities: the study of
strategies for cities rejuvenation and their success.” Other speakers were
represented by the leadership of the capital of South Korea, Seoul, Park
Jin-yong and Yokohama Kubota Atsushi, Japan's second largest city.
Ilsur
Metshin noted that over the past 15 years, the capital of Tatarstan has made a
giant leap in infrastructure development. Singapore was an example of this,
among other things – the Mayor studied at the Lee Kuan Yew College of Public
Service in 2009.
Later, the
Mayor's Office team came to Singapore to learn the experience of local
authorities. After that, it was decided in Kazan to train local entrepreneurs.
Thus, the “Expanding Horizons” forum was established, which brought together
international top managers, well-known economists and politicians. “In this
collaboration, we were creating a new future for Kazan,” the Mayor said. The
project proved to be in demand – five people applied for one place in the
training course.
The capital
of Tatarstan managed to achieve high results thanks to the consistent
implementation of programs for the development of a comfortable urban
environment. Over the past 15 years, people in Kazan have been actively relocating
from dilapidated housing, overhauling houses and yards, and creating
neighborhoods. Systemic development has allowed Kazan to become a host for
international events. This year, for the first time in history, a phygital
tournament Games of the Future was held in Kazan, the broadcast of which
gathered about 25 billion views. And in less than 10 days, the BRICS Games will
start in the capital of the republic, which will be attended by representatives
of 60 countries.
Now the priorities
of Kazan are to become a smart and environmentally friendly city with high
standards of quality of life, which will be attractive to investors.
This year's
World Cities Summit is dedicated to two themes – climate change and the aging
of the world's population. During the summit, the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize
is held – a prestigious international award is presented to heads of
municipalities for success in management and innovation.