Australia launches US$38 million smart cities programme

The Australian Government is encouraging local councils to find technology solutions to improve suburbs and cities.

Speaking at a Future Cities Summit in Brisbane last week, Angus Taylor, Assistant Minister for Cities, announced a series of stakeholder roundtables to be held in September to kick-start the AU$50 million (US$38 million) Smart Cities and Suburbs Programme.

A key election commitment of the new government, the programme will support councils across Australia to fast-track open data and innovative technology solutions to fix local problems.

Taylor said the goal was to encourage local governments to partner with tech experts to make cities and suburbs more liveable, sustainable ...