The B40 Smart Cities and Digital Transformation Working Group Meeting was held in Istanbul from 28 to 30 June 2026, hosted by İSKİ (Istanbul Water and Sewerage Administration). The meeting brought together municipal leaders, experts, and policymakers from across the Balkans to exchange best practices and strengthen regional cooperation in smart cities and digital transformation.
Delegations from Lefkada (Greece), Constanța and Galați (Romania), Roskovec (Albania), Nikšić (Montenegro), Sofia (Bulgaria), Zagreb (Croatia), as well as representatives from Muğla, Tekirdağ, İzmir, and Istanbul participated in the meeting.
The main programme officially opened on 29 June with welcoming remarks delivered by Tayfun İşbilen, Head of Information Technologies at İSKİ; followed by Barbaros Büyüksağnak, Permanent Secretary of the B40 Balkan Cities Network; and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şafak Başa, General Director of İSKİ (Istanbul Water and Sewerage Administration).
The day’s sessions focused on the use of artificial intelligence in local government, featuring presentations by Gartner on AI in the public sector, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Caner Güney on the İSKİ AI Platform, and Global Maksimum on data engineering and AI applications.
The programme also featured presentations by the municipalities of Lefkada, Zagreb, and Roskovec, highlighting their smart city initiatives and digital transformation projects. Participants further visited the Digital Experience Museum to explore innovative technologies and their application in urban development.
The meeting concluded with a renewed commitment among participating cities to strengthen regional cooperation and promote innovative, data-driven solutions for more sustainable and resilient urban development across the Balkans.
