UAE to implement smart city project in Albania

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to implement a smart traffic project in Albania, as part of a broader plan to roll out smart city infrastructure throughout the Balkan country.

In an announcement by data analytics company Presight, which is part of the Abu Dhabi-based technology group G42, it revealed an agreement struck with Albania to implement a wide-ranging ‘smart city’ project powered by artificial intelligence. The initiative is set to cover 20 cities across the country, reportedly with the particular aims of reducing traffic and congestion and shortening emergency response times.

The agreement was signed on Sunday in the Albanian capital Tirana between Emirati Minister for Industry and Advanced Technology and Presight Chairman, Dr Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Jaber, and Albanian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Infrastructure and Energy and Interior Minister, Ervin Hoxha.

It also took place in the presence of the UAE’s President Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama.

The project will reportedly establish a command and control centre within the Balkan country to facilitate management of the infrastructure and control the decision-making process for public service operations, particularly with the aim of shortening travel times throughout urban areas.

According to the announcement by Presight, the project “is designed to enhance Albania’s sustainability and digital transformation agenda, while also introducing efficiencies across public services”. It is also “set to digitise urban infrastructure, enhance traffic management, and modernise public services, and in doing so elevate Albania to be one of Europe’s leading adopters of artificial intelligence and smart nation infrastructure.”

In a statement, the company’s CEO Thomas Pramotedham hailed Albania for “embarking on one of Europe’s most ambitious smart nation transformations, leveraging AI to drive economic growth, efficiency, and community well-being.”

The totalitarian dream: Gulf and Israeli surveillance is going global