Smart cities are rapidly emerging as the world’s answer to the riddling challenges that come with urban development. Some of the smartest cities in the world, like London and Singapore, are demonstrating how intelligent and forward-looking technologies can steer positive lifestyle changes, while also delivering on the macroeconomic goals of financial inclusion and social advancement. Ascend Digital Solutions is revolutionary entry in this space, and a strategic partner to the governments of Africa. Ascend is working on digital transformation and connectivity, which will rapidly change the business landscape of Ghana. Leading the way is its Internet of Things (IoT) solution suite that lets you control anything in the physical world through sensor-enabled devices.

With nearly three million people around the world moving to cities every week, as per the UN-Habitat – 2009 report, smart cities are a viable long-term investment that ensure higher sustainability and better quality of life.

What are smart cities?

The phrase ‘smart cities’ has recently become synonymous with the Internet of Things (IoT). This assumption is true up to an extent, as smart cities rely heavily on IoT sensors to track their residents, assets and operations. These sensors gather and dispense valuable information to help the cities and their resources function efficiently.

Smart cities are connected and self-sufficient, up to a large extent. Central to success of the smart city is its ICT (information and communication technology) infrastructure, which is essentially a backbone spanning this large ecosystem and connecting its various moving parts. Some of the foundational elements of a smart city are data collection and democratisation, analysis and inference, collaboration and communication, and innovative solutioning.

High functionality is a definitive factor for smart cities, whether it involves energy consumption, public transport, the environment or the people. Government and private agencies work closely with each other to create smart systems and initiatives that improve functionality, self-sustenance and efficiency.

Ghana: A shining example of smart administration

As of 2018, Sub-Saharan Africa was the fastest urbanising region in the world¹. This is good news – one that could catalyse Africa’s evolution into a highly sought-after emerging market. However, the lions moving to the cities triggers its own share of problems. Smart cities propose a practical and fail-proof solution to these problems – brought on by Africa’s rapid pace of urbanisation, plagued by a host of infrastructural and economic roadblocks.

One of the pioneers of Industry 4.0 in Africa, Ghana joins the league of African nations embarking on highly anticipated smart city projects. The country has taken dramatic measures to improve the key parameters underpinning the success of its smart city ventures – significant investment in ICT, upskilling and training manpower, focus on education, social programs, and infrastructure development initiatives. An example of administrative excellence, Ghana’s Accra had previously² received the grant for the IBM Smarter Cities Challenge, a push in the right direction on the social and infrastructural development fronts. Ghana continues setting the trend even today, partnering with international companies, like Alibaba, Whale Cloud³ and RACP⁴, on numerous high-value smart city projects.

Ascend: Building smart cities that lead to a smart economy

As per Gartner’s 2019 analysis, smart city frameworks and IoT are the two top technologies set to transform business in Africa in the next decade.⁵ This extends to both Africa’s rural and urban landscapes.

Ultimately, the success of these smart cities depends on the availability of high-speed digital connectivity anytime, anywhere. But, across Africa, the majority of rural areas and a handful of urban pockets face alarming shortage of inexpensive and continuous internet access. This is primarily due to the substantial lack of ICT infrastructure. This subsequently leads to low data visibility for administrators, private players and citizens, and subsequent lapses and delays in decision-making.

Ascend Digital Solutions delivers on Ghana’s smart city and borderless connectivity goals. Our smart solutions include:

• Affordable, abundant and accessible high-speed broadband in rural areas, delivered via Wi-Fi and Free Space Optical Communications (FSOC) systems
• Innovative IoT and cost-effective digital infrastructure solutions that build smart governance, smart people and a smart economy

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Ascend is enabling smart cities in Ghana using next-generation smart technologies and connected devices that are today dominating the urban landscape. The fourth Industrial Revolution is combining the power of data with the power of the people. Technologies to leverage these devices, such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), 5G, security, quantum computing and Blockchain, are unleashing numerous opportunities. But they are also posing new challenges, as citizens are increasingly concerned by privacy issues.

We’re developing smart city solutions in Ghana, transforming an obligatory service into a customer-focused and sustainable corporate entity. Through innovative and smart sewage network management (manhole monitoring), workforce tracking, water quality control, smart streetlights, water/gas AMR, surveillance/door sensors, and waste management solutions, we are revolutionising this space. This unlocks massive, previously unseen opportunities to expand revenue, optimise operations and enhance customer and end-user experience.

Ascend is building a digitally connected Ghana with IoT solutions that are powered by state-of-the-art devices, network, platform and applications, and a perfect fit for industrial, commercial and residential use cases.

To know more about Ascend and its solutions, write to info@ascenddigitalsol.com