Following the first Connecting Europe Facility – Digital (CEF Digital) call for proposals at the beginning of 2022, the Commission selected seven projects that will deploy 5G connectivity and enable innovative use cases for public services and services of general interest.

The first call for proposal under the CEF Digital programme, resulted into a portfolio of projects  that will receive EU funding to support safe, secure and sustainable high-performance infrastructure.

Seven of these projects will exploit the capabilities of 5G networks to deliver new, efficient and more resilient public services in 5 European countries: Belgium, Italy, France, Germany and Hungary. More specifically, they aim to deliver 5G and innovative services to EU citizens in sectors ranging from agriculture to public safety, healthcare, education, emergency and smart city services.

A second 5G for Smart Communities call is currently open until the 23rd February.

Selected 5G for Smart Communities projects:

The selected 5G for Smart Communities projects are the following:

I. 5G4ASSAC: 5G for a Smart Sicilian Academic Campus (Italy)

The project will implement a 5G Private Mobile Network (MPN) to support new functional approaches to education and training in universities and hospitals, as well as the creation of a continuous care system.

Vodafone (IT) together with UNIPA, University of Palermo will run two use cases in the Health and Education domains to optimise both learning and training processes and to provide solid basis for improving care methods.

The end-users benefiting from the 5G4ASSAC project are both in the university environment (students, professors, researchers, etc.) and in the community of patients suffering from severe chronic diseases, in the cities of Palermo and Trapani.

Total EU contribution:€4.005.551,18

II. 5G4UH: 5G for University Hospital (Germany)

The project will deploy a leading-edge 5G infrastructure at the Frankfurt University Hospital in Germany, enabling innovative 5G use cases and improving the provision of public health services. There will be tele-ultrasound devices as well as innovative monitoring solutions and new solution to organise hospital logistics – all of which contribute to better care, to more efficient processes and to better use of resources and medical skills.

Total EU contribution: €3.339.825

III. 5GAGRIHUB: 5G MPN AgriTech HUB (Hungary)

A 5G Mobile Private Network (MPN) Hub will be established at a Demonstration farm in Mosonmagyaróvár, Hungary to enable end-to-end solutions in agriculture. Vodafone (HU), in collaboration with the Széchenyi István University, will carry out three use cases focusing on the agriculture sector:

- Row crop cultivator in field crop production

- Machine-to-machine connection in field crop production

- Weed monitoring and spraying plan with machine-to-machine connection in field crop production

Total EU contribution: €399.940,50

IV. CONNECTOW: 5G Connectivity for Wavre (Belgium)

Citymesh, in close cooperation with the Belgian city of Wavre, will build a state-of-the-art 5G private network complying with current security standards and attaining the highest level of performance. The EU-funded CONNECTOW project will install a city-wide 5G network so that firefighters and police services can use safety drones in emergency situations. Additionally, 5G-based smart meters will be installed so that the city of Wavre can better manage and green its energy consumption.

Total EU contribution: €2.976.018

V. Flanders Smart Fields: 5G rural coverage for innovative healthcare services in the Westhoek (Belgium)

The Westhoek region, better known as "Flanders Fields", has high historical value as a major battle theatre on the Western Front during the First World War. The EU-funded Flanders Smart Fields project will provide standalone 5G coverage for the Westhoek region to support innovative applications in healthcare and education. Deploying a performant 5G network throughout the region will enable e-health services like virtual video consultations and real-time remote assistance from doctors located in the hospital to emergency response units. Additionally, medical transportations between different hospitals will be improved by using 5G-based drone technology and children who are sick for a longer period of time will be able to attend classes remotely.

Total EU contribution: €4.133.305

VI. Hi5: High Connectivity via 5G (France)

Hi5 is a visionary project for rolling out 5G technology in the Toulouse metropolitan area by 2025. It will deliver leading-edge connectivity to public services, building on the existing fibre-optic network and data centres, focuses on five use cases:

- “City Services” – enhancing the abilities of authorities in the areas of traffic management and supervision of public space.

- “Event Connectivity” – focusing on the need to flexibly deploy recording and communication equipment during outdoor events.

- “Mobility Lab” – offering area-wide access to net-based services with ultra-high speed for start-ups and small enterprises.

- “Education” - taking teaching and academic research at the University of Blagnac to a new level.

- “High-speed video data offloading” – making the public transport in the metropolitan area safer and more user friendly.

The project is taking the innovation within the metropole area one step further, underlining Toulouse’s standing as leading European technology region. All 5G use cases demonstrated have high potential for Europe-wide application, to stimulate the wider and faster deployment and take up of 5G across Europe.

Total EU contribution: €2.806.500

VII. PPDR 5G: Establishing 5G based Public Protection and Disaster Relief broadband (PPDR BB) services on the EU external Schengen border (Hungary)

A 5G-based disaster-resilient mobile network will be implemented along the 136.7 km Hungarian-Ukrainian border to support real-time communication with broadband voice/data/image/video transmission services, with extensive coverage, high availability, high (gigabit) bandwidth and reliability for public authorities and agencies (in particular, ambulance services, police and border guards ) performing public tasks (health, police and border protection).

The Pro-M Professional Mobilradio Private Company Ltd., a special Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) telecommunications service provider in cooperation with 4 socio-economic drivers: the National Ambulance Service, the National Police Headquarters, the Hungarian Defence Forces Command, responsible for defence policy and defence economy, and the public IdomSoft Zrt (Ltd), key player in the development of electronic public services and systems will run multiple use cases linked to health services, law enforcement and border protection.

Total EU contribution: €3.998.549,25

Related topics

Connectivity 5G/6G Connecting Europe Facility Funding for Digital

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