KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 18): Ninety percent of the country's population will live in cities by 2050, according to the World Bank statistics. Currently, 74.5% now lives in urban areas.
In her welcome speech at the 2nd Smart Cities Asia 2016 today, Knowledge Group of Companies director Thila Perisamy said that every hour, 21 people will either migrate to Kuala Lumpur or are born in the capital, which adds up to 504 people per day and 183,960 per year.
"Smart cities is a multi-disciplinary project, we believe that an event like Smart Cities Asia is a key to fostering conversation between policy makers, urban designers and technologist to work towards a smarter Malaysia," Thila said.
Later, a memorandum of agreement was signed between Kiwitech Sdn Bhd and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) to develop the first Smart Cities Industrial Laboratory in Unimas.
This Smart Cities Industrial Laboratory will be used as a platform for both students and staff of Unimas, as well as Kiwitech's employees to provide training, acquire knowledge, skills and hands-on experience, and initiate and develop Smart City research and development activities.
For the establishment of the Smart Cities Industrial Laboratory in Unimas, Kiwitech has allocated an initial investment of up to RM500,000 and the amount may increase depending on the demand to have a complete and high quality laboratory.