• The ninth Gobernarte contest is open to subnational governments in Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Entries must be submitted by April 10.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched the ninth edition of the Gobernarte Contest: Pablo Valenti Award, which recognizes the best subnational government initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean. This year, the award focuses on the most innovative uses of artificial intelligence and digital identification to enhance citizen services.
The IDB’s Gobernarte contest aims to identify, document and reward innovative experiences from the region’s subnational governments. It primarily focuses on initiatives that enhance the services that governments deliver to their citizens.
In addition to rewarding innovation, the Gobernarte contest helps disseminate the winning initiatives throughout the region so that other governments can learn about them and adopt their good practices and successful experiences. The contest is part of the IDB’s fAIr LAC+ initiative, which supports responsible use of artificial intelligence in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Contestants can submit entries from March 13 to April 10, 2025, and there is no fee for participating. All information about participating in the contest, as well as the requirements, rules and regulations, are published at https://openidb.brightidea.com/Gobernarte2025.
Ninth Gobernarte contest
The 2025 contest will reward innovative subnational governments in two categories:
• Category one: Using artificial intelligence to enhance government services. These innovative subnational government initiatives could range from regulatory frameworks to training programs to technological solutions like virtual assistants, chat bots, accessible digital platforms or predictive models for decision-making.
• Category two: Digital identification for providing secure and accessible public services at the subnational level. Initiatives can include biometric solutions, authentication platforms and inter-institutional coordination to speed up processes and cut costs.
Second-level governments (states, provinces, departments, regions, or analogous divisions) or third-level governments (municipalities or their equivalent) from IDB borrowing member countries are eligible to submit entries.
Entries can be submitted individually or in partnership with national or subnational governments, civil society organizations, private sector entities, or academic institutions. They must be submitted by the government teams that designed the initiative.
A panel of international experts will evaluate the submissions and select three: one submitted by second-level governments, one from third-level governments that serve over one million inhabitants, and one from third-level governments that serve less than one million inhabitants.
The winners will be announced at the 10th Smart City Expo LATAM Congress, which will take place on July 10–12, 2025 in Puebla, Mexico.
Please email any questions to [email protected]
About the IDB
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is devoted to improving lives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1959, the IDB works with the region’s public sector to design and enable impactful, innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development. Leveraging financing, technical expertise and knowledge, it promotes growth and well-being in 26 countries.
