The Meridian Diplomacy Forum held in Washington DC on April 12, 2023, featured a panel discussion on the rise and growing power of city networks. The panelists included Dorothy Kisaka, Executive Director of the Kampala Capital City Authority in Uganda; Alby Bocanegra, Founder of The Urban Futurist; Kate Johnson, Head of U.S. Federal Affairs at C40 Cities; and Emérita Torres, Vice President of Policy, Research and Advocacy at the Community Service Society of New York who served as Moderator.
During the panel discussion, Kisaka shared insights into her work in both the public and private sectors and her role in facilitating Kampala’s involvement in the Africa Smart Town initiative. Kisaka highlighted the challenges facing Kampala, including providing effective services to its 1.5 million residents at night and 3 to 4 million people who come to the city during the day. She also discussed the city’s recovery from the effects of war and its resource and mindset challenges.
Regarding Kisaka’s response on how the city is dealing with the challenges, she expressed that “We have rallied the people by using the phraseology: A Smart City Agenda. We are championing the smart city agenda.” This agenda, she said, has three components: technology, infrastructure development, and people’s well-being.
“First, let’s leverage the use of technology in service delivery. Whatever we do, if it can be done using technology, let’s do it,” she said. Kisaka further stated that Uganda is slowly moving toward technology relatively speaking. So, rallying people towards that is a big clarion call, she stated.
Infrastructure development is the second part and this covers roads, drainages, hospitals, schools, and so on. She emphatically expressed that people’s well-being as the third component is about care and empathy as a key ingredient in city building. Hence, the Kampala city authority strongly believes that people’s well-being is a key pillar in building the city.
Furthermore, the Kampala Capital City Authority under her leadership has rallied the people around this agenda to bring together a strategic plan, mission statement, and vision statement for building a Smart City together. Uganda currently has 10 cities, and she stressed the importance of these cities interacting with each other, with Kampala being the lead city. Thereby, creating a forum to learn from each other and interact with other cities outside of Uganda, such as Nairobi (Kenya) and Dakar (Senegal).
Kisaka’s work on public transport in Kampala was also highlighted during the panel discussion. With an estimated 1 million motorcycles known as ‘boda bodas’ in operation, she and her team are working to regulate the industry, ensure safety, and provide training to ‘boda boda’ riders. This is particularly important in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as boda bodas served the community by providing transport without infecting others.
The panel discussion presented a platform to highlight the exemplary work of Kisaka in Kampala, demonstrating how a city can unite its people around a collective vision for a brighter future. In addition, the other panelists contributed important perspectives on the difficulties that cities face and the importance of cooperation between cities to tackle these obstacles.
