Sejong City Takes AI Disaster Response to the Global Stage ... Strengthens Digital Cooperation with the World Bank

[Financial News, Sejong = Reporter Kim Won-jun] Sejong City is seeking to broaden the horizons of global cooperation by joining forces with the World Bank Group (WBG) to present its outstanding policies in artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation to the international community.
 Sejong City said it took part in the ‘2026 Global AI and Digital Summit,’ held at the Grand Hyatt Seoul from the 19th to the 22nd, and shared examples of outstanding local policies. The summit was co-hosted by the World Bank Group, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the Ministry of Science and ICT to discuss ways to innovate public services using AI and digital transformation.
 At the ‘Digital Transformation of Local Governments’ session held on the 21st, Kim San-ok, director in charge of AI and digital affairs, presented Sejong SIREN, an AI-powered disaster response system, to the international community. By using AI to automate the drafting of emergency alert messages and the selection of recipients, Sejong SIREN has cut the alert dissemination process—which previously took an average of at least 10 minutes—to a matter of seconds. The system has already earned recognition for its technological capabilities, receiving the top prize at Sejong City’s AI Innovation Competition and the Minister of the Interior and Safety Award.
 Then, on the 22nd, Ambassador for International Relations Park Seong-su met with Kim Sang-bu, the World Bank Group vice president in charge of digital and AI, to discuss ways to sustain cooperation. The two sides agreed to share Sejong City’s achievements in digital administrative innovation overseas through the World Bank’s global network and knowledge exchange channels, and to continue broadening the scope of their cooperation.
 Through this event, Sejong City has expanded its cooperation with the World Bank—which had until now focused on green growth—to include AI and digital transformation, as well as international knowledge sharing.
 “I will further strengthen our network with the World Bank, turn it into tangible results in cooperation, and continue to raise Sejong City’s international standing,” said Ambassador for International Relations Park Seong-su.
 Meanwhile, as localized torrential rains caused by climate change and urban disasters have become more complex and larger in scale, establishing AI-based disaster management systems to secure crucial time in the initial response has emerged as a key task for local governments around the world. Technologies that automate the entire process—from data collection and analysis to alert dissemination—to minimize human error are drawing inquiries about adoption from cities in developed countries as well as developing nations. Sejong City’s ‘Sejong SIREN’ has attracted considerable international attention as a practical demonstration of the successful integration of AI technology into a large-scale administrative city model.
[email protected] Kim Won-jun Reporter