In this presentation, MEED discusses the status of smart city projects across the region.

Dubai has achieved key milestones in line with its smart city initiatives. While the emirate is not the only entity with an explicit intention to adopt smart technologies to achieve efficiency and sustainability, it does set a policy framework that the rest in the GCC could emulate.

Lower oil prices are expected to affect these projects – which include the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in Saudi Arabia and Msheireb Downtown Doha in Qatar – in one of two ways: budget cuts could mean their completion will be further delayed, or the need to diversify and innovate away from hydrocarbons could push them forward.