Leading South Korean institutions have partnered with the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to further the city’s shift to a smart, sustainable, and inclusive urban future. The Mumbai 3.0 vision, a forward-looking plan to turn Mumbai into a climate-resilient, internationally competitive metropolis, is based in large part on this relationship.
The agreement was formalised during a high-level dialogue at the India Global Forum 2025, hosted at the Jio World Centre, where MMRDA officials met with a South Korean delegation. Discussions focused on knowledge-sharing, smart city innovations, and foreign investments aimed at reshaping the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) through next-generation infrastructure and governance.
The adoption of successful Korean urban models, especially the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ), a tech-driven smart city that has grown to be an urban economy worth USD 100 billion, is at the heart of this endeavour. Mumbai intends to establish inclusive housing clusters, green mobility networks, fintech innovation zones, and smart transport corridors after being inspired by this approach.
Senior MMRDA officials revealed that the partnership will bring Korean expertise in fields like AI-based urban management, sustainable transport, smart housing, and clean-tech development — all central to elevating the city’s liveability and sustainability metrics.
One of the major themes discussed was Transit-Oriented Development (TOD), where mixed-use townships are planned around major mass transit hubs. These zones aim to reduce car dependency, lower carbon emissions, and foster healthier, walkable, and gender-inclusive neighbourhoods.
The collaboration also identifies logistics parks, affordable housing, data centres, and clean-tech hubs as key areas for foreign direct investment (FDI). Mumbai seeks to tap into South Korea’s extensive investor ecosystem, including KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency) and private infrastructure firms.
Furthermore, capacity building has been given top priority, with collaborative programs aimed at educating Indian engineers and planners in international best practices via technical exchanges and pilot projects. It is anticipated that this institutional support will fortify governance frameworks and include sustainability into MMR’s urban planning procedures.
The partnership builds on Mumbai’s entry into the Global Twin Cities Platform, through a Memorandum of Understanding signed last year with the World Smart Cities Forum (WSCF) in Davos. The goal is to synchronise Mumbai’s development with internationally benchmarked sustainability indicators and climate resilience goals.
Experts at the forum emphasised that while technology plays a critical role, the true measure of success lies in inclusive urban growth. That means ensuring access to clean water, safe public transport, affordable housing, and employment opportunities — particularly for marginalised communities in peri-urban and underdeveloped regions.
As MMRDA propels Mumbai into the Mumbai 3.0 age, this partnership with South Korea has the potential to revolutionise the city’s transformation into a compact, carbon-neutral, and equitable urban area in addition to constructing high-tech infrastructure.
Source: Urban Acres
