Mayors and ministers of BRICS cities honoured at the World Innovation Award

The World Innovation Award honors innovation leaders who have made an outstanding personal contribution toward the achievement of the UN’s vision for a better quality of human life and global prosperity, as defined by the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

This year, prizes were awarded in 9 nominations: “Good Health and Well-Being”, “Quality Education”, “Clean Water and Sanitation”, “Affordable and Clean Energy”, “Decent Work and Economic Growth”, “Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure”, “Reduced Inequalities”, “Sustainable Cities and Communities”, and “Partnerships for the Goals”.

The award gala ceremony took place in Moscow on September 18 as part of the BRICS Urban Future Forum.

The award jury was chaired by Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Mayor of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, former Executive Director of UN-Habitat, the UN’s top institution for urban development. Also on the jury were Dr. Raekwon Chung, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (with IPCC), former advisor to the UN Secretary-General on climate change; Nicholas You, Executive Director, Guangzhou Institute for Urban Innovation; Sameep Shastri, Vice Chairman, BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Ismail Tekin, Deputy Chairman, World Organization for Development; Dr. Nicolas Buchoud, President, Grand Paris Alliance for Metropolitan Development (under G20 auspices); Prof. Renato Troncon, Head of Design Research Lab, University of Trento; Mtho Xulu, President, South African Chamber of Commerce.

Director of Doha Municipality, Mansour Ajran al-Buainain received the award in the Good Health and Well-Being category for fostering an innovative healthcare ecosystem and contributing to the development of low- and middle-income countries. Claudio Orrego, Governor of the Metropolitan Region of Santiago de Chile, and Abdulla Mohammed Al Basti, Secretary General of the Executive Council of Dubai, were also nominated.

Akim of Almaty Region, Marat Sultangaziev won the award in the Quality Education category for elevating the status of the teaching profession. The other nominees were Sun Zhiyang, Mayor of Guangzhou, and Firhad Hakim, Mayor of Kolkata.

Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş bested his rivals in the Affordable and Clean Energy category, thanks to his achievements in providing comprehensive organizational and financial support for sustainable energy initiatives. The other nominees were Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology of the UAE, and Eduardo da Costa Paes, Mayor of Rio de Janeiro.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin was awarded a prize in the Sustainable Cities and Communities category for his role in deploying Pixel, the autonomous cleaning robot, the city works fleet, and eco-monitoring laboratories. The other nominees were Yin Yong, Mayor of Beijing, and Jorge Macri, Mayor of Buenos Aires. The award was presented by Dr. Raekwon Chung, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former advisor to the UN Secretary-General on climate change.

Doddalahalli Kempegowda Shivakumar, Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka State, received the award in the Decent Work and Economic Growth category in recognition of his role in the region’s economic development, which involved contributing to the development of the ‘Knowledge, Healthcare, Innovation, and Research City’ (KHIR City) project. The other nominees were Carolina Cosse, Mayor of Montevideo, and Sayyid Saud bin Hilal bin Hamad Al Busaidi, Minister of State and Governor of Muscat.

Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulrahman bin Rashid Al Khalifa, Governor of the Capital Governorate of Bahrain, won the award in the Clean Water and Sanitation category for his role in advanced technology development for the delivery of safe drinking water to the people of Bahrain. The other nominees were Ricardo Luis Reis Nunes, Mayor of São Paulo, and Vladimir Kukharev, Mayor of Minsk.

Alireza Zakani, Mayor of Tehran, received the award in Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure for implementing a comprehensive suite of measures to promote technological advancement. The other nominees were Abdalla Darwish, Mayor of Beirut, and Yuechun Sheng, Mayor of Wuhan.

Eldar Azizov, Mayor of Baku, was honored in the Reduced Inequalities category for expanding opportunities and support for private entrepreneurs and the self-employed. The other nominees were Aleksandar Šapić, Interim Mayor of Belgrade, and Saif Badr Al Qubaisi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Municipality.

Yanet Hernández Pérez, governor of Havana, received the award in the Partnerships for the Goals category for promoting international partnerships in healthcare. Also nominated were Aibek Junushaliev, Mayor of Bishkek, and Fuad Noman, Mayor of Belo Horizonte.

The award was founded by the World Organization for Development, an international non-profit organization, member of the UN Global Compact, a group of non-governmental organizations working to achieve the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The award honors innovation leaders who have made an outstanding contribution toward the attainment of the UN’s vision for a better quality of human life and global prosperity, as defined by the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The award methodology is derived from the UN’s approach to assessing cities’ progress in innovation-driven sustainable development (UN New Urban Agenda, UN Global Urban Monitoring Framework). Projects are evaluated according to their innovativeness, relevance, efficiency and replicability.