The WTISD-10 theme is juxtaposed with that of the Shanghai World Expo 2010, which is dedicated to promoting “Better Cities, Better Life” and which will showcase a number of initiatives aimed at achieving greener, safer, healthier, prosperous, inclusive and well-managed cities — where over half the world’s population resides.

ICTs provide solutions to many of the problems facing cities even as they become magnets for migrating populations as well as contribute to making them more eco-friendly and economically viable. For many city dwellers, it is nearly impossible to imagine life without ICTs. From television to mobile phones and the Internet, ICTs have reshaped the world, helping billions of people to live, work and play. ICTs present innovative ways of managing our cities — smart buildings, intelligent traffic management, new efficiencies in energy consumption and waste management, and not least exchanging information and knowledge and communicating on the move in an increasingly converged information society.

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