South Korea Launches Smart City Contest for Local Solutions

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) in South Korea has announced a new initiative to tackle local urban issues, such as traffic congestion and safety concerns, through innovative data-driven smart city solutions. Starting April 14, 2026, the ministry will launch a public contest seeking proposals for “citizen-centric smart city solutions.”

This competition aims to identify and fund innovative services that leverage urban data to improve the daily lives of residents. Key areas of focus include enhancing traffic management, improving environmental monitoring, and developing other essential services that directly benefit communities. MOLIT plans to select two outstanding proposals from across the nation.

Each selected project will be eligible for up to 1 billion Korean Won in government funding. This financial support will be provided through a 1:1 national fund matching system, encouraging collaborative investment between the central government and local entities or consortia.

A core aspect of this initiative is its commitment to open-sourcing the developed solutions. Successful smart city models and technologies will be made publicly available, allowing any city across South Korea to adopt and adapt them for their specific needs. This approach aims to foster broader urban innovation and facilitate resource sharing among municipalities.

This program underscores South Korea’s ongoing commitment to smart city development, utilizing advanced technologies and data analytics to create more efficient, sustainable, and livable urban environments. By empowering local communities to propose and implement tailored solutions, the government aims to directly address the specific issues faced by neighborhoods, enhancing overall urban resilience and citizen well-being.

While specific application details will be provided closer to the date, interested parties—typically local governments or consortia with the capacity to develop such solutions—are encouraged to prepare data-driven projects that offer tangible benefits to their communities, with the call for proposals officially opening on April 14, 2026.

Source: 국토교통부 — Original Article (Korean)