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The INTELLIGENT ISLAND CYPRUS: i-Cyprus 2020
Neapolis Smart EcoCity
Azamat Abdoulaev, Ph.D.
http://www.eis.com.cy; http://www.neapolis.com
azamat@leptosestates.com
The i-Cyprus 2020 Strategy is aim to create a Smart Eco Island of knowledge hub and
innovative society, effective government, knowledge industry and green energy sector, high
quality eco tourism, intelligent banking system and financial services, progressive logistics
and the maritime services, next generation ICT services, world-class healthcare, innovational
education and research, creative work and green lifestyle.
Smart Eco Island Cyprus 2010 © Azamat Abdoullaev
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STAKEHOLDERS
Presidency and Council of Ministers: the President of Cyprus
Church of Cyprus: Archbishop and Holy Synod
Government Departments: Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Education and Culture,
Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment, Ministry of Commerce and
Industry, Ministry of Communications and Works, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health,
Cyprus Tourism Organization
Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Municipalities: Lefkosia, Larnaka, Lemesos, Pafos, Famagusta, Kyrenia, Morphou
Business Groups: Leptos Group (Neapolis Smart EcoCity Project); Shacolas Group, Lanitis
Group,…
Banking Institutions: Bank of Cyprus, Marfin Bank, Hellenic Bank
Public-Service State Corporations: Cyta-Vodafone, EAC Electricity Authority
Telecom Corporations: CYTA, Areeba (Shacolas Group Telecommunications), National TV
stations, Cyprus Radio
Universities: University of Cyprus (Institutes, Schools, Faculties or Departments), Open
University of Cyprus, Cyprus University of Technology; EUC European University-Cyprus
Frederick University - Cyprus , University of Nicosia, Neapolis University – Cyprus
NGO: Neapolis Innovation, Research and Development Center
Research Institutes: The Cyprus Institute,…
Rationale
Vision and science reveal what the world could be. The vision of the Europe of
Knowledge and Innovation, Knowledge-Intensive Society, Knowledge Base of Europe and
Technological Know How was first set up in the development plan of EU as the Lisbon
Strategy: ‘to become the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the
world…by 2010’.
The i2010 strategy, the EU policy framework for the information society, has underlined three
key objectives:
to create a single European Information Space of digital economy, high-bandwidth
communications and content and digital services,
to strengthen investment and innovation in ICT research (R&D instruments, FP 7, e-
infrastructures, European Technology Platform, e-invoicing framework),
to support e-inclusion and quality life of citizens (ageing, independent living and
inclusion, eAccessibility, broadband gap or digital divide, inclusive eGovernment,
digital literacy, culture, e-public services as e-government and e-Health, and
intelligent transport).
Even failing to reach the i2010 strategies mostly due to the lack of a real Union, Europe 2020
Strategy is setting out a new vision for the 21 st century, aiming to set the European Union in a
global context of a smarter and greener planet. The EC has specifically highlighted three
interconnected priorities knowledge/innovation based Smart Economic Growth; resource-
efficient green Sustainable Economic Growth; socially Inclusive Economic Growth. Under
these key priorities, there are seven flagship initiatives: Innovation Union; Youth on the
move; A Digital Agenda for Europe; Resource Efficient Europe; Industrial Policy; An agenda for
new skills and jobs; European platform against property.
A European strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth is a socio-technological
program to uproot the existing social ills and evils: about 80 m of poor people, more than 20%
of young population is unemployed, old industrial base, low-skill jobs economy, absence of
innovative ideas, lack of knowledge-based industry, government incompetence and
corruption, absence of real digital society, poor tertiary education (30%, while in Russia
about 50%), wasting R&D funding, poor innovation policy, consistent eco-degradation (like as
in Hungary, the massive poison spillover).
Such a radical structural transformation is viewed as the only way to have the best of three
possible scenarios: the lost decade, sluggish recovery and sustainable recovery. The Europe
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2020 Strategic vision/mission statements and strategic goals and aims are not as advanced as
it was defined in the Intelligent Europe Centre Proposal.
The National Knowledge Society Strategy for Cyprus 2010-2015
• National Program of Innovative ICT and Broadband Knowledge Economy
• National Program of Smart Eco Territories (eco communities, villages, towns,
cities, districts)
• National Program of Science and Research Centers and Innovation Networks
• National Program of Knowledge Parks (knowledge clusters, university
research parks, science and technology parks, healthcare parks, technopolis,
business park, industrial parks)
• National Program of Smart Government Agencies and State Corporations
• National Program of Smart Corporations and Intelligent Business
Management
• National Program of Smart Lifestyle, Creativity and Knowledge and Persistent
Learning
Research, Science and Technology Parks
Smart environments bringing knowledge, creativity, learning and inventions [of the academia and
research lab] to life via the modern marketplace [of business world] as innovative products,
processes, and services.
National University Research Parks Networks: Global University System
University of Cyprus (Institutes, Schools, Faculties or Departments)
Open University of Cyprus
Cyprus University of Technology
EUC European University-Cyprus
Frederick University - Cyprus
University of Nicosia
Neapolis University – Cyprus
Research Institutes: The Cyprus Institute,…
As the knowledge-intensive environments for businesses and institutions, Science
& Technology Parks promote the economic development and competitiveness of
regions, cities, and the whole island by:
• Increasing country competitive advantage through innovation networks
• Creating new business opportunities and adding knowledge value to economy
• Stimulating entrepreneurship and incubating new innovative companies
• Stimulating education and research, creativity and innovation and social
reforms
• Generating knowledge-based projects, enterprises and jobs
• Building knowledge spaces for the emerging knowledge workers and creative
professions
• Enhancing the synergy between universities and companies and government.
Advanced Business (Industry) Clusters
[a geographic concentration of related businesses, suppliers, and institutions in a
field of economy, commerce or industry]: Techno-clusters; Know-how clusters;
Agro-Clusters (as wine production clusters); geo-clusters, sector clusters, horizontal
clusters, vertical supply chain clusters.
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• increase the corporate productivity and creativity,
• drive innovation in a field of knowledge economy, commerce or industry
• stimulate innovative businesses in knowledge industry
Innovation Networks: Creativity, Collaboration, and Communication
Innovation inputs (government and fiscal policy, educational policy, R&D
investment, innovation environments) > Innovation outputs (intellectual property,
new technology, patents, technology transfer; business performance, quality
management, productivity and shareholder returns; knowledge business booming
and economic growth, knowledge-based society)
i-Cyprus Project Size and Implementation: partnership among government,
academia, research institutes, public sector, private corporations, and non-profit
sector; Funding sources (EU Funding, national funding and private investment),
Project Size (implementation, €? M, to be assessed)
Current Industries: tourism, construction, cement and gypsum production, ship
repair and refurbishment, food and beverage processing, textiles, light chemicals,
metal products, wood, paper, stone, and clay products
i-Cyprus Industries: Modern tourism, smart housing industry, intelligent ICT
industry, knowledge service industry, intelligent banking system, smart oil business
i-Cyprus Plan of Actions in three stages:
Intelligent Nation Strategy;
Intelligent Nation Master plan;
Intelligent Eco Island Development
Intelligent Island Projects
1. Singapore, Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015), 10 years master plan of an
Intelligent Nation, a Global City, powered by Infocomm, to enable: Innovation,
Integration, Internationalisation.
2. The Smart Island Malta, the National ICT Strategy (i2010 Action Plan of the EU
Commission of the EU’s Lisbon Agenda; the national RTDI strategy)
The First Intelligent Sustainable Development in Europe
Realizing the Intelligent Europe strategy, Neapolis Smart EcoCity has been
launched as a genuine sustainable community: ecologically green, digitally smart
and socially intelligent city.
The “New Smart Eco City” is envisioned as a strategic way to the Smart Green
Planet comprising intelligent eco cities, intelligent infrastructure, smart governance,
education, healthcare, public safety, telecom, banking, retail, stimulus, work,
traffic, transport, products, food, energy, oil, water, and pervasive computing.
Emerging as one of the first genuine green and smart cities in the world, the New City’s
concept, design and implementation are a step forward to the Europe 2020 Strategy
highlighting the following priorities:
– Smart growth: developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation.
– Sustainable growth: promoting a more resource efficient, greener and more competitive
economy.
– Inclusive growth: fostering a high-employment economy delivering social and territorial
cohesion.
Neapolis (New City) is envisioned as a key node of the Smart Planet with smarter cities,
buildings, infrastructure, government, intelligence, education, healthcare, public safety,
telecom, banking, retail, stimulus, work, traffic, transport, computing, products, food,
energy, oil, and water. For the Smart World is all about knowledge society, smart economy,
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smart people, smart governance, smart transport and ICT, smart environments, smart living
and creative working in green buildings, cities, regions, and ecosystems.
As a part of the Smart World, the New City will combine the best features of
innovative communities, intelligent cities, digital towns, smart urban areas, green
municipalities, or zero energy/ carbon/waste cities.
Designed as an intelligent sustainable community of creative lifestyle, learning,
research, innovation and productive entrepreneurship, the New City is unique in several
critical respects.
• The Neapolis Program is about a world-class sustainable “New City” of Eco-Intelligence
implementing the most innovative development strategy, a green, smart, and intelligent
community;
• The Neapolis Program is about an intelligent community of green living and creative
learning, research, innovation and entrepreneurship;
• The Neapolis Program is about the design and development of a master-planned
knowledge ecosystem and innovative business environment, fostering a climate and culture of
innovation, creativity, quality lifestyle and modern entrepreneurship;
• The Neapolis Program is about a full integration of living/ residential, working,
commercial, retail, recreating, learning, and public spaces, buildings and facilities;
• The Neapolis Project is about the common intelligent environment model for globally
emerging sustainable communities and smart cities.
The warranty of the Program’s achievement is its commitment to critical Value
Propositions: Ecopolis; Urban Aesthetics; Integrated Township; City Intelligence; Green
Infrastructure; Intelligent Lifestyle Hub; Quality of Life Services; Future Proof Smart
Technologies; Sustainability Standards; Private Public Partnership.
Conclusion
The Cyprus Intelligent Island Program is a comprehensive and holistic approach to
developing smart and creative nation driven by intelligence, integration and
innovation. Such a unique social change of whole country is challenging and
historical. Cyprus, as a strategic island in the eastern Mediterranean, is fully able to
transform into global knowledge-centered nation (land, country, or state) with all
the intelligent capabilities and innovation resources. Changing the nation into an
intelligent land needs to take into consideration three i determinants:
o Intelligence (intelligent citizens, knowledgeable communities, the wisdom of
population, collective intelligence, and digital intelligence);
o Integration (globalization, globally collaborative innovation networks, the
internet, WWW, integrated supra-networks of the research, development,
technology, innovation, business, and public sectors of life, internet-based
ubiquitous connectivity, integrated fixed and wireless broadband networks,
fixed and mobile GIS and GPS applications, intelligent internet of things /web
and entities, the wisdom web of knowledge, or the Virtual/Digital Aristotle,
global research and innovation space);
o Innovation (renewable resources, next generation ICT, global computer
network technology, the internet, WWW, multimedia applications, broadband
infrastructure, omnipresent computation, digital knowledge resources and
services, everywhere and anytime, coordinated research, science and
technology, and business parks, intelligent services, intelligent power grid
and network infrastructure, smart electricity/gas/water meters, smart
buildings and homes, streets, villages, towns, cities, areas, and countries).
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