Smart City Expo Cali Puts Urban Resilience and Reconstruction in the Spotlight

As cities face increasingly complex challenges around climate, infrastructure, mobility and disaster resilience, Smart City Expo Cali will bring the conversation to Santiago de Cali on 30 September and 1 October, with technology and urban innovation placed alongside the practical question of how territories can recover and prepare for future shocks.

The fourth Colombian edition of Smart City Expo is expected to bring together more than 3,000 professionals and 75 national and international experts. Organised by the Mayor’s Office of Santiago de Cali, EMCALI, Fira de Barcelona and Corferias, the event marks the first time the Smart City Expo platform has been held in the capital of Valle del Cauca, following two editions in Bogotá and one in Cartagena de Indias.

Its arrival coincides with the region’s recovery following the serious earthquake that struck the area last August. Against this backdrop, the event will explore how technology, innovation and public-private collaboration can support reconstruction while helping cities become more resilient.

Under the theme “Bio-intelligent cities: innovation for life”, the programme will address four principal areas: smart mobility and territorial connectivity; safe, resilient and healthy cities; environment and sustainable energy; and public innovation, creativity and emerging technologies.

The emphasis reflects a broader understanding of the smart city concept, linking digital development with issues such as risk management, security, sustainable mobility and the capacity of urban territories to respond to future disruptions.

From urban innovation to practical collaboration

The congress programme will feature 75 speakers from Colombia and beyond, including Santiago de Cali mayor Alejandro Eder, author and urban nature researcher Nadina Galle, Boston CIO Santiago Garcés, entrepreneur and lecturer Mauricio Hoyos Holguín, former Curridabat mayor and former Costa Rican Minister of Education Edgar Mora, and UN Women representative in Colombia María Inés Salamanca.

The programme will also feature Gabriel Enrique Ferrer, Secretary of Information and Communications Technologies of Valle del Cauca; Marcelo Facchina, Smart Cities and Digital Development principal specialist at CAF; Hernán Matías Perín, general director of Govtech and CorLab at the Municipality of Córdoba; and Eleonora Pazos, director for Latin America at UITP.

Alongside the congress, an exhibition area will provide space for companies and organisations to present solutions, while networking sessions will focus on potential strategic alliances and business opportunities. An Agora Zone will complement the programme with presentations of innovative projects and specialised sessions.

The event will also have a pre-programme component on 29 September, when Invest Pacific and the Mayor’s Office of Santiago de Cali host “Cali, the home of technology and innovation”. Designed for entrepreneurs, investors, specialised media and international experts, the initiative will showcase the city’s innovation ecosystem through visits focused on technology, renewable energy, biotechnology and health innovation.

Part of Fira’s international smart-city platform

Smart City Expo Cali forms part of Fira de Barcelona’s growing international programme of events focused on urban development and innovation.

In 2026, the wider Smart City Expo programme includes editions in Santiago de Chile, Curitiba in Brazil, Santiago del Estero in Argentina and Puebla in Mexico. Fira’s international portfolio also includes Tomorrow.City events in Shanghai and the United States, Mexico Hospitality Expo in Guadalajara and Tomorrow.Blue Economy in Niterói, Brazil.

The programme is complemented this year by the first edition of Argentina Alimenta in Buenos Aires, further extending Fira de Barcelona’s international event activity beyond its home market.
 

Published by Meeting Media Company, the publisher of Headquarters Magazine (HQ) – a leading international publication based in Brussels, serving the global MICE industry and association community.