This article was originally published by elEconomista.es on 16 September 2026. See the original article here.

The head of Boldyn Networks in Spain analyses the progress of smart cities, the role of 5G networks and the opportunities offered by Andalusia to develop new digital infrastructures.

Malaga has once again become a meeting point these days to analyse what the cities of the future will be like. Greencities, Urban Intelligence & Smart Mobility has brought together more than 80 cities and municipalities, more than 200 companies and entities and 115 speakers, with urban innovation, digitalisation, sustainability and smart mobility as the main axes. The edition is also being held for the first time in parallel with the VI Smart City Congress of the Spanish Network of Smart Cities (RECI).

Julio González, country manager of Boldyn Networks in Spain, a company specialising in the design, construction and maintenance of advanced network infrastructures for complex environments such as transport systems, airports, industrial centres and smart cities, participated in this context. González, with 20 years of experience in telecommunications, home connectivity and commercial leadership in Europe and Latin America, addresses the degree of maturity of Andalusian cities, the challenges of connectivity, mobility on the Costa del Sol, public-private collaboration and the models of European cities that can serve as a reference for Andalusia.

Malaga is currently hosting Greencities, one of the main meetings on urban innovation, sustainability and smart mobility. At what point do you think Andalusian cities are in this process of transformation and what differences do you see compared to other European cities?

Andalusian cities, and in particular Malaga, are at an important moment of maturity in their digital transformation. Spain is going through a strategic turning point: cities have understood that digitalisation is no longer an option, but a necessary tool to improve public services, face challenges such as mobility and sustainability, while attracting investment.

Malaga is a good example that urban innovation is not the exclusive heritage of the great European capitals. Its recognition in the IESE Cities in Motion 2026 report demonstrates that a city can make significant progress when there is a vision of the future and a sustained commitment to digital transformation. With 600,000 inhabitants and more than 3.7 million overnight stays per year, in addition to a hotel occupancy rate of more than 80%, the city of Malaga has become an economic, tourist and technological hub of reference in southern Europe, coming to be considered by the EU as the European Capital of Smart Tourism. This recognition is supported by its more than 650 companies and technology multinationals, its pioneering network in Europe for the integration of microgrids, smart meters and energy storage; or its interconnected public transport network with open data, and sensors to control tourist flows and avoid overcrowding. That is why there is no better place to celebrate this Urban Intelligence and Sustainability Forum, Greencities.

In Europe, however, we find projects that have already taken additional steps in the development of their digital infrastructures. In the UK, in Sunderland, for example, we have a long-term collaboration and have deployed a 5G network and IoT infrastructure on an urban scale, while Rome is developing a shared 5G infrastructure on its public transport network, also supported by Boldyn Networks. These are interesting models for Andalusia, although each city must adapt these models to its own needs.

When we talk about a smart city, we often think of applications, sensors or digital systems. What are the infrastructures that a city really needs to be able to consider itself smart and connected? Where is the main deficit in Andalusia right now?

The fundamental element is not the sensors or applications, but the infrastructure that allows all these systems to be connected and work in a coordinated manner. A smart city needs high-capacity, robust, secure networks capable of managing information in real time.

For years we have seen a certain tendency to install sensors and platforms in isolation. But if the networks that carry that information fail or become saturated, that entire ecosystem loses much of its usefulness. That is why we talk about connectivity as the nervous system of the city.

The next step is to build shared, resilient infrastructures that are ready to evolve with technological needs, from 5G to artificial intelligence, digital twins or connected mobility. It is not a question of adding technology for the sake of adding it, but of creating a common base on which the different public services and operators can work in a coordinated way, and be prepared for the future growth of the city.

Strategic infrastructure

Connectivity has become as important an infrastructure as roads or transport networks. To what extent are Andalusian cities prepared to take the next leap in 5G networks, fibre, sensors, data management and interoperability between the different public services?

There is an important foundation and, above all, a growing awareness that connectivity is a strategic infrastructure. The rest now is to move from isolated projects to more integrated and sustained planning over time.

The cities that are best prepared are those that have understood that technology is not an end in itself, but a tool to improve public services and quality of life, as is being discussed in Greencities. That means having reliable communications, the ability to manage real-time data, and networks capable of prioritizing certain services when needed.

We also need to make progress on interoperability. Until now, in many cases, independent projects have been developed for lighting, water or mobility, each with its own connectivity solutions. The trend should be different: to have a common and shared infrastructure that allows all these services to grow and evolve on the same basis.

One of the great challenges for cities is to ensure that technology has a real impact on the lives of citizens. How do you measure that a city is really making progress and not simply incorporating new technologies? What indicators should municipalities take into account?

Success should not be measured by the number of sensors installed or technological projects launched. The real measure is what impact these investments have on the daily lives of citizens.

A city moves forward when it manages to improve mobility, make urban services more efficient, reduce its environmental impact, respond better to an emergency or anticipate problems related to traffic or climate. It is definitive, when technology becomes concrete results.

That is why city councils should focus on indicators of efficiency of services, mobility, environmental management, resilience, safety and, ultimately, quality of life. Sunderland's experience is interesting in that regard: Public Wi-Fi already supports more than 300,000 individual connections a month; AI-enabled security cameras have the capacity to solve 250 crimes or incidents a year. In addition to deploying digital infrastructure, it has used technology to bring digital tools to more than 200,000 citizens through 22 Digital Centres in vulnerable areas.

The positive economic impact that advanced connectivity brings is also evident in Sunderland. Nearly 3,800 businesses now have access to gigabit broadband and there are an estimated £66 million a year in productivity gains.

Mobility is one of the great challenges of Andalusia. Marbella, for example, with more than 170,000 inhabitants, still has no rail connection and is the only Spanish city with more than 150,000 inhabitants that does not have one. To what extent does this situation condition the sustainable mobility of the Costa del Sol and what role can new technologies and connectivity play while this infrastructure deficit is resolved?

The absence of a rail connection clearly conditions the sustainable mobility options of the Costa del Sol and shows that physical infrastructures are still essential.

Digital connectivity cannot replace a necessary transport infrastructure, but it can help us to manage existing mobility much better while addressing these deficits.

A robust digital infrastructure allows you to know traffic flows in real time, coordinate services and optimize journeys. It also facilitates better planning, because it allows decisions to be made based on data and not only estimates.

The experience of Rome is a good example. There, a shared 5G infrastructure in public transport is being used to improve mobility management and optimize urban services. In territories such as the Costa del Sol, with high tourist and travel pressure, having this real-time management capacity can help to make better use of the infrastructures that already exist.

In a province like Malaga, with high tourist activity and strong population growth in certain municipalities, what infrastructures do you consider a priority to develop to prevent the increase in population and travel from generating greater mobility problems?

The priority should be to have a common digital infrastructure that allows urban travel and services to be managed with real-time information. This involves high-capacity 5G networks, shared infrastructures, and systems capable of connecting sensors, utilities, and transportation networks.

In a province with such an important tourist activity, it is also especially important to be able to respond to peaks in demand. The example of Rome is interesting because it is a city under strong tourist pressure that is using a shared 5G infrastructure to improve mobility and the management of services.

The key is to anticipate growth and build an infrastructure that can adapt to new needs and technologies without having to start from scratch every time.

The leadership of Malaga and Seville

If we broaden our view to the whole of Andalusia, which cities are advancing the fastest in terms of smart mobility and urban digitalisation? Are there important differences between Malaga, Seville, Cordoba, Granada or medium-sized cities and what explains these differences?

I don't think it's so much a question of identifying which city is progressing the fastest, but of observing what each one is doing and, above all, how far it has managed to integrate its projects. In Andalusia there are interesting initiatives in different cities.

In Andalusia there are interesting initiatives in different cities. Malaga, for example, continues to make progress in its transformation as a smart city. This year, the City Council has launched the Centesimal project, in collaboration with Red.es, to digitize strategic buildings through sensors and real-time data collection. The aim is to improve urban management, optimise resources and move towards a more efficient, sustainable and connected city model.

Seville is also developing projects of relevant scope. The eCitySevilla program, for example, contemplates an investment of close to 20 million euros to promote sustainable mobility, digitalization, energy efficiency and smart building solutions in Sevilla TechPark, among others.

If we broaden our view to the whole of Andalusia, which cities are advancing the fastest in terms of smart mobility and urban digitalisation? Are there important differences between Malaga, Seville, Cordoba, Granada or medium-sized cities and what explains these differences?

I don't think it's so much a question of identifying which city is progressing the fastest, but of observing what each one is doing and, above all, how far it has managed to integrate its projects. In Andalusia there are interesting initiatives in different cities.

In Andalusia there are interesting initiatives in different cities. Malaga, for example, continues to make progress in its transformation as a smart city. This year, the City Council has launched the Centesimal project, in collaboration with Red.es, to digitize strategic buildings through sensors and real-time data collection. The aim is to improve urban management, optimise resources and move towards a more efficient, sustainable and connected city model.

Seville is also developing projects of relevant scope. The eCitySevilla program, for example, contemplates an investment of close to 20 million euros to promote sustainable mobility, digitalization, energy efficiency and smart building solutions in Sevilla TechPark, among others.

Administrations have several challenges ahead: optimising public investment, selecting the projects that really add value, coordinating the different actors and ensuring that the infrastructures deployed today will still be useful in ten or fifteen years' time.

In this context, public-private collaboration can play a very important role. The Administration knows the needs of citizens and has the capacity to establish the regulatory framework, while the private sector can provide technology, investment and experience.

At Boldyn Networks we advise cities with our technological expertise to design the best solution to the problem that the city wants to solve.

In addition, a long-term collaboration makes it possible to solve one of the common problems of smart city projects: that there is funding to launch a pilot, but not to maintain and update it later. With models such as Neutral Host, the private sector can assume part of the initial investment, technological risk and infrastructure evolution, while the city has the service in a more predictable way.

Boldyn Networks works precisely on the development of connectivity infrastructures and networks for cities, transport and large spaces. What is the company finding in Spain and what opportunities do you currently see in Andalusia? What solutions do you think can be most applied in our cities?

Spain is at a time of great potential for the development of smart cities, as evidenced by the high interest aroused by the RedCyTI call. In fact, this Tuesday the Government resolved the program, which will mobilize 126 million euros to promote smart city projects.

For Boldyn, the opportunity lies in accompanying the administrations as a long-term technological partner and transferring to Spain experiences that are already working in cities such as London, New York, San Francisco, Sunderland or Rome, adapting them to the needs of each territory.

Among the solutions with the greatest potential are high-capacity shared infrastructures and private 5G networks. The Neutral Host model allows you to build a single network that can be used by different operators and public services. This reduces the need to carry out duplicate works, limits the occupation of urban space and allows for an infrastructure prepared to incorporate new technologies and services.

If we compare Andalusia with cities such as London or other large European urban centres, in what aspects are we still behind and what models do you think we could adapt? Is there any European experience that you consider particularly interesting for Malaga or for other Andalusian cities?

The main difference is in the degree of maturity of digital infrastructures and how they have been integrated into the urban infrastructure itself. In some European cities, connectivity is no longer conceived as something added, but as an essential part of the functioning of the city.

London is a good example. Its connectivity network in the metro provides high-speed coverage in stations and tunnels and allows for an infrastructure prepared for critical services and real-time communications.

Sunderland offers another interesting model because it combines 5G and IoT with specific applications related to mobility, assistance to vulnerable people, traffic management and response to climate problems. In addition, it has incorporated a dimension of digital inclusion through its Digital Centres.

And Rome may be especially relevant for Malaga because of the combination of tourism and pressure on mobility. Its shared 5G infrastructure in public transport seeks to improve travel management, optimise urban services and better respond to mass tourism.

It is a matter of learning from these models and adapting them to the specific needs of each city.

And looking ahead to the next five or ten years, if you had to point out three priorities for Andalusia to move towards a more connected, sustainable and efficient city model, what would they be? What decisions should be taken now for that change to be truly visible in a decade's time

I would point out three priorities. The first is to build a robust, shared connectivity infrastructure that is ready to evolve. Cities need a digital foundation capable of supporting 5G, real-time data, artificial intelligence, digital twins, and connected mobility.

The second is to bet on a stable and long-term public-private collaboration. We have to overcome the model of isolated or pilot projects that depend on one-off subsidies and move towards infrastructures whose maintenance and evolution are guaranteed throughout their life cycle.

And the third is to always put technology at the service of concrete results for citizens. The transformation must translate into more efficient mobility, better environmental management, greater capacity to respond to emergencies and climate problems, more effective public services, greater economic productivity and, ultimately, a better quality of life.

The decisions taken now have to be based on that vision. Connectivity should not be understood as a product that is installed and replaced, but as an infrastructure that accompanies the development of the city for years. If Andalusia manages to build this foundation and combine it with a clear strategy and effective collaboration between administrations and companies, it will be in good conditions to face the next generation of smart cities.