Translated by Andrés Martínez
Bogota has been awarded the Gold-level certification by What Works Cities, granted by Results for America and Bloomberg Philanthropies. This distinction recognizes the city's excellence in governance, management models, practices, data utilization, and appropriate policies for public administration within Latin America.
This recognition is a result of the coordinated efforts of various city entities, led by the High ICT Advisory, which, since 2022, has collaborated with What Works Cities on projects related to the strategic use of data and information to optimize processes and enhance the quality of life for all Bogota residents. Additionally, the certification team visited the Colombian capital in October 2023 to gain firsthand knowledge of some of the strategic projects involved in the process.
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Mayor Carlos Fernando Galán stated, "This recognition validates the city's efforts to use technology, data, and innovation to modernize public entity management and improve the quality of life for the population." He added, "Now, the city joins an exclusive group in Latin America with Gold-level Certification, alongside Fortaleza (Brazil) and Buenos Aires (Argentina). In this way, we commit to continuing our work in data utilization."
Rochelle Haynes, Director of What Works Cities and Results for America, highlighted Bogota as a "leader in data management that engages stakeholders in Data Governance policies. These are the kinds of cities we want in our network to truly demonstrate what it means not only to collect data but to put it into practice to improve the lives of its residents."
Why did Bogota receive this certification?
The certification evaluated 43 criteria across 8 dimensions, including data management, leadership, capacity, and impact, among others. Some of the projects analyzed were:
Care Blocks: Bogota currently has 21 spaces overseen by the Secretariat for Women's Affairs, where over 546,000 caregivers have participated in recreational, educational, and entertainment activities while trained personnel care for their family members. In 2023, iBO (Bogota Public Innovation Laboratory) implemented a series of tools using two chatbots: one for streamlining caregiver registration and another for service providers who monitor participation in classes and courses. To date, there have been over 2,100 caregiver registrations and 7,200 attendances in 214 classes. Ángel Silva, an instructor at the Care Block in the Bosa district, emphasized, "The change in registration is significant as it saves time, and users are happy because they are no longer required to provide extensive data during the process, allowing them to enroll in classes more quickly."
Mobility Video Analytics: This project provides real-time analysis of moving elements, enabling the tracking of traffic volume in specific areas and identifying over 50,000 previously unidentified road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. This supports informed decision-making for more efficient urban development aimed at community well-being.
Government Center: Through a digital solution, data and information from the capital are comprehensively managed, optimizing reporting times and presentation of results with auto-updating tools. This allows for proper monitoring of projects being executed by entities and also facilitates a coordinated process for supporting and assisting strategic projects.
Air Quality Monitoring Network: This is a surveillance system with 19 stations and 25 microsensors that enable timely and real-time identification of particulate matter and air pollutant concentration levels.
This certification aligns with the objectives outlined in the Bogota Smart Territory Policy, which includes closing the digital divide and leveraging data to provide better services to residents. Through Decree 575 of 2023, "which defines the components of the Data Infrastructure and establishes the corresponding governance model in Bogota," the city administration will continue to work towards promoting the conscious, responsible, and strategic use of information."
