The capital of the Republic of Korea hosted the kick-off ceremony of the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO) for 2025. The event brought together over 50 participants, including diplomats, representatives of international organizations, and experts in sustainable urban development and technologies, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.
In his speech, Ambassador of Kazakhstan Nurgali Arystanov, representing Almaty as the Executive Vice President City of WeGO, emphasized the importance of international cooperation in the field of smart and sustainable cities. He noted that Almaty is becoming a regional financial, logistics, and transport hub. Thanks to this status, new offices of international organizations are opening in the city, and the number of international flights is growing. In particular, in September 2024, WeGO opened its Central Asia Regional Office in Almaty, which successfully hosted WeGO’s Executive Committee Meeting. Furthermore, the United Nations General Assembly recently unanimously adopted the resolution on the establishment of the UN Regional Center for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty.
Regular direct flights are operated between Almaty and Seoul by Air Astana and Asiana Airlines. Additionally, starting from April 7, 2025, Eastar Jet will launch two new direct flights from Seoul to Almaty, making travel between the two countries even more convenient and accessible.
In 2023, Almaty was also awarded the bronze prize at the Seoul Smart City Prize by WeGO, which recognizes the city’s efforts in innovative solutions for sustainable development. As a result of this achievement, city representatives participated in an extensive training program aimed at using technology to improve energy, transportation, healthcare, and safety," said Ambassador Arystanov.
It should be noted that the role of cities in international diplomacy is rapidly increasing. Kazakhstan, as one of the founders of WeGO (Astana, 2010) and an active participant (Almaty, member since 2021), is ready to continue its cooperation within organization in areas such as digital transformation, innovation, and the use of artificial intelligence in the development of smart cities.
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