Top 7 disruptive technologies for cities

7_disruptive_techImagine you were working in development and poverty reduction in the early 1990s (I was!). Only one website existed in all the world in August 1991 (today there are over 1.5 billion). Mobile phones were expensive, rare, and clunky. Very few would anticipate a situation in which India would have more mobile phones than toilets.

To paraphrase Bill Gates: we tend to overestimate the changes that will happen in the short term and underestimate those in the long term. Technology is quietly but radically disrupting and transforming how cities deliver services to their citizens. It does that in a way that fundamentally alters not just the mode of delivery but its underlying economics and financing.

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eC2:Lighting Tanzania: Business Skills Training for Solar Entrepreneurs in Tanzania

Deadline:  23-Apr-2018 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) Solar-street-lights-in-Guinea1

Objective: Lighting Africa, a World Bank Group program, seeks to accelerate the development of commercial off-grid lighting markets in Sub-sahara Africa as part of the wider efforts to improve access to energy. Lighting Africa is helping mobilize the private sector to build sustainable markets to provide the rural and urban poor in Sub-Saharan Africa with safe, affordable, and modern off-grid lighting. In Tanzania, given the large geographical size of the country and the dispersed population, off-grid energy is well positioned to play an important role in reaching the rural population. Lighting Tanzania program would like to scale up the adoption of solar technology through building the technical and business skills of SMEs engaged in the activities of installation, spare part sales, maintenance service and retail of quality-verified solar lanterns and solar home systems to enable them reach the rural population.The overall objective of the assignment is to train approximately 25 distributors/importers in Dar es Salaam and Arusha and 300 retailers/ sales agents in 6 zones (Arusha, Dodoma, Dar es salaam, Mwanza, Mbeya and Mtwara) to enhance their knowledge of off-grid solar products, business management and technical capacity. This will be achieved by providing training of business management courses and Lighting Global quality framework.

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eC2: Consultancy Services for Capacity Building for GIS-based Revenue Collection System and Geospatial Data Infrastructure in Zanzibar

Deadline: 26-Apr-2018 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) Connectworld-810x321

Objective: The objective of this consultancy is to support Zanzibar Government in strengthening the planning and design of ICT-based urban governance activities and systems, namely, GIS-based revenue collection system and ZAN-SDI, and enhance the capacity of the Zanzibar stakeholders and the Property Tax Implementation Unit to operate and manage these developed systems. This will assist to improve e-Governance system in related areas such as land and property management and valuation, revenue collection, land use planning, and urban resilience/disaster risk management. The activities will include assessment of the current systems and gaps of the ICT and geo-spatial capacity, provision of technical assistance and complementary initiatives, and recommendations to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the ICT-based governance tools supported by ZUSP or other donor-funded projects. It will also include capacity building and knowledge dissemination activities.

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Breaking the vicious cycle of high inequality and slow job creation

nasikiliza-breaking-the-vicious-cycle-of-high-inequality-and-slow-job-creation-780x439Growth is picking up in South Africa, and this is good news after two years of declining incomes per capita. Observers are revising their forecasts, and optimists foresee economic growth to exceed 2% in next years. In recent months, several events have indeed improved South Africa’s economic outlook: the smooth transition in power, the authorities’ reaffirmed adherence to principles of good governance and debt stability, and the upward revision in national accounts, revealing higher economic activity in 2017 than previously measured.

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eC2: Business Plan Development for the Bangladesh Wastewater Treatment Sector treating Textile Manufacturing Effluent

Waste water plantDeadline: 17-Apr-2018 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

Objective: IFC is keen to initiate the textile wastewater treatment market in Bangladesh, by creating a holding company (the Platform) that will invest in wastewater treatment plants and provide treatment services to textile companies in Bangladesh. The Platform will also serve as a basis for developing and demonstrating successful business models and technologies for treating wastewater for the textile sector in Bangladesh. To initiate this plan, IFC is seeking a consultant (the Consultant) to help develop a business plan to address the wastewater treatment requirement of these WDF units. The Consultant will define the strategy and profitability of this business and its development prospects. The Consultant will work closely with the IFC to determine the best strategy to approach the market and also help develop a strong pipeline of potential immediate opportunities the Platform can pursue.

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Keep up with the latest trends on PPPs

It seems like every week there are new reports being published about public-private modern city with highway interchange partnerships (PPPs) by different organizations around the world. How can you keep track of what’s new and what’s relevant for your work?

With over 4,000 documents on PPPs in seven different languages (English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, and Chinese) in its searchable document library, the PPP Knowledge Lab has become a key resource for the PPP community to keep up to date with the latest on PPPs.

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The State of Social Safety Nets 2018

safety-nets-2018-report-cover-1Safety nets protect vulnerable households from impacts of economic shocks, natural disasters, and other crises

  • An estimated 36 percent of the very poor escaped extreme poverty because of social safety nets, providing clear evidence that social safety net programs are making a substantial impact in the global fight against poverty.
  • In developing and transition countries, 2.5 billion people are covered by safety net programs. Of these, 650 million people are from the poorest quintile.
  • Yet, in low-income countries, only 1 in 5 of the poorest are covered by safety net programs.

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eC2: ENERGY AUDIT AND PRE-FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR NAMANGAN CITY SUVOKOVA

energyDeadline: 19-Apr-2018 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

Objective:  The specific objective of this assignment is to explore options to unlock energy efficiency and demand management potential of Namangan city water supply and sewerage utility, by analyzing its energy performance indicators and identifying energy savings and load shifting options. This Consultancy assignment consists of three primary and interrelated tasks: (1) Energy Efficiency Audit; (2) Analysis of Time-of-Use of pumping operations to identify options to reduce electricity costs; and (3) Pre-feasibility studies for energy efficiency and load management investments. Commencement of the services is approximately scheduled for May 2018, to be implemented over a 9-month period. Further details are provided in the attached Terms of Reference.

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How Can Water Scarce Cities Thrive in a Resource Finite World? New World Bank Report Shares Strategies and Solutions

STORY HIGHLIGHTS WSC-book-cover-780-439

  • New report by the World Bank’s Water Scarce Cities Initiative (WSC) shares the experiences of cities worldwide that are building resilient water supply systems in increasingly water scarce environments.
  • By collaborating with urban water practitioners, global thought leaders, and institutions, the report makes the case for shifting the existing paradigm, and demystifies solutions for improved urban water scarcity management.
  • The report provides an up-to-date and innovative first-hand look into how water scarce cities are taking fate into their own hands, from exploring new ways to manage water to building resilience to severe droughts.

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“Real governance” in Fragile, Conflict-affected and Violent States – What is that?

The Fragility Forum was held in Washington D.C. from March 5 to 7. More than 1,000 people from over 90 different countries attended. At one of the events, ‘Real Governance in FCV settings: Engaging State and Non-State Actors in Development’ practitioners and policy-makers discussed which actors to work with in complex FCV situations, and what the choice of actors would mean from a human rights and social accountability perspective.

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