Revitalising growth in emerging markets

EMERGING market economies enjoyed a period of robust growth from 2000 to 2012, in part due to earlier structural reforms and spillovers from foreign direct investment. In recent years however, there has been news of a widespread slowdown. As a result, investors and businesses that are considering new set-ups in these emerging markets are hesitant to make the leap.

To tackle this challenge, emerging economies have readily moved towards establishing a smart region master plan - a vision that will prod cities towards greater connectivity, productivity and growth over the next few years.

India has plans to set up 100 smart cities, while the Indonesian government is spending approximately US$2.4 million to build Smart City Jakarta. This smart cities vision is expected to present opportunities worth US$1.5 trillion over the next five years, according to Frost and Sullivan's Urbanisation Trends in 2020 report. Businesses operating in emerging markets have much to look forward to when the smart city plan is fulfilled.