The 2021 Global Smart City Index placed Bilbao among the ten smartest cities in the world. It is by far the first in Spain. The metropolis of the Basque Country, with a population of about 400,000, is a shining example in the areas of public transport, waste management and recycling, fast internet, and digitalised public services.

Bilbao used to be a city of heavy industry, and today it is a champion of new industries. The comprehensive urban transformation it has undergone earned Bilbao the highest urban planning awards.

The city management has, over the years, prioritised the needs of the citizens, but also the internationalisation of the city.
What sets Bilbao apart is also the city’s charter of values, counting 17 of them, which were agreed upon by the locals and the city management.

About what Bilbao is, and what other cities in Europe ought to be today when it comes to recovery and resilience, N1’s Ivana Dragicevic spoke to the director of the department for public services, engagement and internationalisation of Bilbao, Oihane Aguirregoitia.

“Bilbao as a city has a strong international brand, but that is because, as a city, we were able to reinvent ourselves after a profound crisis that we lived through,” Aguirregoitia said, adding that the city wants to be “at the forefront of the international arena, but without sacrificing their main goals: boosting employment, maintaining the quality of life, and reducing inequalities in the city.

She mentions a project led by the Bilbao Mayor, Juan Mari Aburto, “Bilbao – city of values.” It is a participative project, she said, in which the city defined its unique charter of values.

“At the beginning we started with ten values, and after this participatory project we ended with a charter of 17 values. We can find social justice at the centre of these values, as well as the respect for human rights,” Aguirregoitia said.

Watch the full interview with Oihane Aguirregoitia below: