Smart Cities: The Missing Piece

In Freetown, Sierra Leone, open geospatial collaboration is emerging as a missing link in community-led urban development. Shoaib Burq highlights how Slum Dwellers International (SDI) and local partners are working together to build an open geospatial foundation that brings scattered spatial data into a unified, accessible structure for community-driven analysis and planning.

At the centre of this approach is the creation of a shared spatial data infrastructure that enables communities to map, analyse, and interpret their own urban environments. By consolidating previously fragmented datasets, the initiative allows local actors to move beyond ad-hoc mapping toward more systematic, evidence-based engagement with issues such as flooding, environmental health, and service access.

Building on this foundation, Geobase functions as an open backend that supports a growing ecosystem of local applications. Tools such as K-Block and AI-assisted satellite image search make it easier to identify risks, monitor air quality, and support participatory planning processes. These tools are designed to lower technical barriers and ensure that spatial data can be used directly by communities rather than remaining confined to expert systems.

Technology alone does not create equitable or resilient cities. Impact emerges when spatial data is embedded in local knowledge, shared ownership, and practical tools that communities can actively use. Through open collaboration, geospatial information becomes a foundation for collective learning, informed decision-making, and long-term urban resilience.

By strengthening local capacity and embedding data into everyday planning practices, the SDI partnership in Freetown demonstrates how open geospatial collaboration can support more equitable, inclusive, and resilient cities. The approach highlights how digital foundations, when governed collaboratively, can enable sustainable urban development driven by communities themselves.

This event is part of the ISCN Global Mixer, a series of events organized by the International Smart Cities Network. The presentations cover a wide range of topics related to international smart city approaches and provide exciting insights into urban digitalization worldwide - in just 30 minutes.