Actua’s representatives at the stand received inquiries from countries such as Australia, Austria, Canada, Israel, Italy, Turkey, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, Finland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Morocco, Slovakia, Japan, France, Spain, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Belgium, India, Poland, Russia, Singapore and South Korea. Furthermore, delegations made up of 62 businessmen from the United Kingdom established contacts with executives of Andorran companies, and more than fifty private meetings between businessmen from the Principality and other nationalities also took place.
Satisfactory results
Judit Hidalgo, director of Andorra Development and Investment (ADI-Actua), stressed that “we are very satisfied with the final results. The image of Andorra is consolidated as a country that is betting on technology and innovation. In addition, the impact of the Andorran presentations was positive and many people admired our projects”.
Andorran companies that used our free Actua stand for presentations or B2B meetings were: Apiumtech, Sóc Creatiu, FEDA, Andorra Telecom-Huawei, Nima-World, Podoactiva, Freemindtronic, Naos, Electrichain, Telcap, E-Beat, E-Motion, uSchuss!, and also researchers from the Andorran Observatory of Sustainability (OBSA) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The Persuasive Electric Vehicle (PEV), an autonomous vehicle developed jointly with researchers from MIT, and the Andorran model of CityScope, were also demonstrated at the Actua space.
Andorra Living Lab
The Economy, Competitiveness and Innovation Minister, Gilbert Saboya, also attended this year’s Smart City Expo World Congress 2017, and gave a widely followed speech, among others, with Jeff Merritt, Innovation Director of New York City. Saboya positioned Andorra as a test laboratory (Living Lab) enabling companies to develop their products. He also showed the new opportunities offered by the country as a result of the process of economic opening.
A record-breaking Smart City Expo World Congress
Under the motto Empower Cities, Empower People, Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC), the main international event on Smart Cities closed its largest edition so far. From 14th to 16th November, the congress brought together 675 exhibitors and 420 experts. The event addressed strategies to empower cities and their citizens through active participation, critical reflection, awareness and access to and control over important decisions and resources.
In addition to Andorra, countries such as Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, China, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Holland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden and the United States, and the cities of Atlanta, Berlin, Busan, Casablanca, Dubai, Grenoble, London, Lyon, Montevideo, Moscow, New York, Puebla, Quebec, Taipei, Tel Aviv and Zheijhang also participated.
