City recognised as data-driven blueprint pioneer for a high-growth African economy

15 October 2025

The City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Alderman Theresa Uys, recently attended the invitation-only Tallinn Digital Summit hosted by the Prime Minister of Estonia, Kristen Michal. The theme for this year’s forum was ‘Collectively at the Crossroads: Towards Secure and Resilient AI Futures’ and allowed for constructive and pragmatic dialogue among leaders from political, business, innovation, financial, digital, and defence domains.

‘This year’s invitation to the Tallinn Digital Summit stands as a testament to the City of Cape Town’s digital advancements to date. Cape Town is at the forefront of a major digital shift and in 2024 we became the first African city to launch a comprehensive public data strategy. As we embrace the exciting world of AI, we are also cognisant of the fact that AI models are only as good as the data on which they are trained, and this is what drives our renewed investment and focus on data. Data is more than information, it is the foundation for accountability, innovation and citizen empowerment,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Alderman Theresa Uys.

Alderman Uys was part of a panel of architects and key decision makers behind three globally distinct models for success, namely: Tallinn, the benchmark for a frictionless digital society; Cape Town, pioneering a data-driven blueprint for a high-growth African economy; and Coimbra, cultivating a specialised deep-tech ecosystem. The aim was to establish how cities are developing cutting edge services and frameworks for high-impact public-private investment and, exploring how data and entrepreneurship will redefine the very nature of governance and urban competitive advantage.

Over the course of two days, the Tallinn Digital Summit focussed on examples that drive government efficiency, viable applications of technologies in strengthening cybersecurity and resilience as well as investing in the next generation.

This high-level conference featuring moderated panel discussions and keynote addresses, complemented by an extensive bilateral programme facilitating state-to-state, state-to-business, business-to-business, and cross-sectoral meetings. This included an innovation and business expo specifically focusing on showcasing Estonia's digital capabilities, and building strategic collaboration, dialogue, and relations between Estonian and global actors.

Caption 1: Alderman Theresa Uys speaking on a panel of architects and key decision makers from Tallin and Coimbra at the National Library of Estonia.

Caption 2: Daniel Erik Schaer (Estonian Ambassador to Kenya and South Africa), Alderman Theresa Uys, Praven Naidoo (City’s Corporate Services), Alan Moon (Cybersecurity Manager) and Susanna Huibrecht Elizabeth Scheepers – (Pegasys Technical Specialist consultant)

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Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office