Berlin, September 2019 – FIWARE Foundation, the non-profit organization that encourages the adoption of standards and open source technologies for the development of smart solutions is thrilled to welcome on board its newest member, the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO).

Established in 2010, WeGO is an international organization comprised of city and other local governments, smart tech solution providers, and national and regional institutions, which all share the solid vision of transforming cities into smart sustainable cities. Headquartered in Seoul, WeGO is supported by regional offices in East Asia (Chengdu, China), Eurasia (Ulyanovsk Region, Russia), the Mediterranean (Beyoğlu, Turkey), and Latin America (Mexico City, Mexico).

In late August, Ulrich Ahle (CEO, FIWARE Foundation) met with Kyong-yul Lee (Secretary General, WeGO) in Bangkok ahead of the ASEAN Smart Cities Network (ASCN) Annual Meeting to formalize the mutual membership agreement. As partners, WeGO and FIWARE Foundation will set out joint initiatives aimed at expanding their organizations’ activities portfolio and presence on the international stage. Most importantly, the cooperation will focus on a mutual sharing of relevant knowledge that can help the development of an open sustainable ecosystem, based on smart city platform technologies.

Strategic Cooperation

This includes a strategic commitment to the development, standardization and promotion of the FIWARE technologies within Smart Cities, one of the four major domains in which FIWARE is currently operating. WeGO will support driving the adoption of FIWARE technologies in East Asia, further pushing for open standards and an open service platform. This way, both organizations can leave their mark on driving a global innovation-driven ecosystem that can accelerate the development of IoT-enabled Smart City businesses.

In addition, both organizations commit to identifying avenues toward project financing and implementation in cities around the world, as well as jointly organizing sessions to serve as matchmaking platforms between public and private sector officials. Such activities promote private-public-partnerships and are essential to build efficient smart cities.

FIWARE Foundation and WeGO believe in a strong partner ecosystem that creates value for their members, not only through innovative solutions but also in achieving their visions, goals, and organizational objectives.

“The FIWARE members and partners have been doing increasingly critical work to support (and meet) the growing needs of enterprises that are providing intelligent IoT services. The move to incorporate WeGO into these efforts reflects our commitment towards unleashing a new level of innovation, by providing smart solution providers across the board with further access to the tools and technologies that will ensure the progress of the digital revolution, currently underway. With over 150 members worldwide working to improve citizen’s quality of life, the delivery of public services, and strengthening regional competitiveness, we can only see positive synergies and exciting upcoming projects with WeGO”, said Ulrich Ahle, FIWARE Foundation CEO.

“WeGO firmly believes that cooperation with organizations such as FIWARE Foundation is crucial to create better value for our members,” stressed WeGO’s Secretary General Kyong-yul Lee. “We are looking forward to advancing this partnership to support the transformation of cities around the world into ‘homo sapiencities’ – happy cities for smart people – through the joint development of versatile, universally interoperable, and customizable solutions.”

About FIWARE Foundation:

Founded in 2016 by Atos, Engineering, Orange and Telefónica, FIWARE Foundation accelerates the emergence of innovative marketplaces of smart portable and interoperable solutions, guiding industries, governments, universities, and civil society to develop their smart vision.

With the support of a growing global community that shares the effort of making FIWARE open source technology the best instrument for companies to reach their full potential and scale up their activities to enter new markets and grow their businesses, FIWARE Foundation strives to connect the world to a future in which people can meet, work, live in a more enjoyable, resilient, and efficient way. An exciting digital future where new business opportunities can flourish.

Only by truly eliminating the existing technical and commercial obstacles hindering the effective usage of meaningful data, smart digital solution providers will be able to move forward and drive the market up, based on FIWARE technology.

About WeGO:

WeGO’s mission is to promote smart sustainable cities for all – that is, innovative cities that leverage digital technology and connectivity to improve quality of life, efficiency of urban operations and services, and economic prosperity for all citizens, while ensuring long-term economic, social, and environmental sustainability.

Toward this aim, WeGO develops a broad range of activities, products, and services for its members, targeting knowledge sharing and research, capacity building, action-oriented cooperation, and multi-stakeholder partnerships for urban smartness and sustainability.

WeGO also works to enhance matchmaking opportunities among its members and relevant stakeholders, for a cross-sectoral approach that is key for the successful deployment of smart sustainable solutions in cities around the world.