Ånge

The municipality of Ånge is situated in the geographical center of Sweden. It covers 3 295.56 km2 with a density of only 3 inhabitants per square kilometers.

In Ånge municipality, the city of Ånge is the administrative center with 2500 inhabitants.

Demographically the population is shifting towards a very high rate of old people in need of much care. At the same time the birth numbers are low and the number of people in working age decreasing. The municipality and the region are facing a massive challenge in finding labor and competence and the problem will rapidly increase in the next few years as a big part of the workforce is heading towards retirement.

The municipality is the largest employer in the area, mainly in health care and education. Not many people are moving to our region and we are trying to improve our brand to be both an attractive employer and an attractive region.

Ånge Municipality has identified digital transformation as one of the key elements to solve current and future challenges regarding labor and environment.

A new Strategy for Digitalisation, “Digital for Ånge”, was approved by local elected Council in June of this year. The Strategy is short and concise with an appending action plan of connected activities for all different administrations within the municipality, such as Education, Health and other services. Current actions are for example night cameras for elderly, systems for digital communication between school and parents, and initiatives to build a stable infrastructure. Working together on all levels and over the administrative borders, Ånge is trying to adjust to the future. It is a natural step to expand the digital action plan with IoT solutions and AI and through this project we can build a better knowledge base.

With a declining and aging population, Ånge is facing major challenges in providing welfare for its citizens. Not only is providing services in very rural areas an expensive and time-consuming assignment, it also has a negative impact on the environment. The low density of the population leads to long distances in providing all the services of a Municipality. Visiting just one care recipient, can sometimes mean a one-hour drive for the nurse.