IBM TEAM TO ANALYSE AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HELPING CHIANG MAI BECOME A SMARTER CITY
Project is part of IBM Smarter Cities Challenge grants to assist progressive, forward-thinking municipalities
CHIANG MAI, THAILAND – 20 April 2011: IBM today announced that a team of its executives has begun work with Chiang Mai officials to devise strategies for helping the city to become a preferred hub for medical services and the development of Smarter Food systems.
The city is one of 100 cities that have secured Smarter Cities Challenge grants, where IBM helps municipalities become world-class "Smarter Cities". The programme to assist 100 cities is being implemented as IBM marks its 100th year as a company.
The engagement in Chiang Mai will see a team of IBM experts work alongside Chiang Mai Creative City Steering Committee and Chiang Mai University to develop a realistic roadmap to help Chiang Mai realise its vision of a smarter city. Using IBM’s Smarter City Model, the team will spend the next three weeks analysing the current situation and build on existing plans to realise Chiang Mai’s two key priorities: be the preferred medical hub in the region and improving the food supply chain in Thailand’s northern region.
The Medical Hub project, in partnership with the Faculty of Medicine of Chiang Mai University, will enhance the quality of medical care that is available to the community – in both urban and rural areas. Concurrently, the project aims to turn Chiang Mai into a centre for medical tourism with the infrastructure for supporting international visitors seeking long-term medical care.
The Smarter Food project, in collaboration with the Postharvest Technology Research Institute, Chiang Mai University, aims to improve the food supply chain in Thailand’s northern region and create competitive advantage for Agricultural Producers for both domestic and export markets, through better crop yield forecast, waste reduction, food traceability and water management & food safety.
Five top-performing IBM leaders from the U.S., Netherland and France have formed an "IBM Executive Service Corps" team who commenced their assignment in Chiang Mai on 18 April by talking to Chiang Mai Creative City Steering Committee, Chiang Mai University and civic leaders to better understand local challenges.
Chiang Mai is among 24 cities worldwide selected to receive IBM Smarter Cities Challenge grants in 2011. IBM is awarding a total of US$50 million worth of technology and services to 100 municipalities worldwide over the next three years as part of a competitive grant programme to help drive successful growth, better delivery of municipal services, more citizen engagement and improved efficiency in selected cities. The approximate value of each Smarter Cities Challenge grant is equivalent to as much as US$400,000.
In Chiang Mai's case, the team that IBM is putting on the ground is part of its Executive Service Corps, a variant of IBM’s ongoing Corporate Service Corps pro bono community service programme.
Often called a "corporate version" of the Peace Corps, the programme has made a direct economic impact in many of the 20 countries where over 100 teams and over 1,000 employees from IBM with skills in technology, scientific research, marketing, finance, and business development have engaged. Since its commencement in 2008, the Corporate Service Corps’ mandate and portfolio have been broadened and deepened. It now includes IBM executives who work in teams with city planners, entrepreneurs, business leaders and governmental agencies to develop road maps that identify the best ideas, most scalable solutions and critical next steps in the economic, social and environmental sustainability of cities. Focus areas include transportation, public safety, energy, education, healthcare, water resource management and economic development.
“Chiang Mai is a strategic city in the Greater Mekong Sub-region comprising Thailand, China, Myanmar and Laos. The city has a track record of implementing programmes that tangibly improve the quality of life for its citizens and enhance growth and competitiveness. This strategic move will create roadmaps for other cities in Thailand to follow,” said Parnsiree Amatayakul, Country General Manager, IBM Thailand. “The need for better city management around the world has never been greater and IBM is excited at the prospect of helping Chiang Mai to accelerate its growth opportunities in the global medical and food industries."
To learn more about IBM's corporate citizenship initiatives, visit:
http://www.ibm.com/blogs/citizen-ibm.
To learn more about People for a Smarter Planet on Facebook, visit
www.facebook.com/peopleforasmarterplanet.
To learn more about IBM's Centennial, visit
www.ibm100.com.
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