Grasping the framework for the urban governance of smart cities in Serbia. The case of INTERREG SMF project CLEVER

Abstract

There is global interest in the smart city, not only as an operational concept, but also as a funding mechanism of the EU Cohesion Policy, joint programs, projects and initiatives. According to the EU Commission, a smart city is a place where traditional networks and services are made more efficient with the use of digital and communication technologies, for the benefit of its inhabitants and business. Urban governance, as an instrument of integrated urban development, has an important role as a decentralization criterion in improving the smart city’s performance in more developed countries and regions. At the same time, the countries of Southeast Europe that are not members of the EU (including Serbia) are lagging in this matter. Taken that the application of urban governance in the context of a smart city can be seen as a practical novelty in Serbia, this paper presents and discusses the existing state of the art in this field. The findings presented were derived from collaborative engagement within the INTERREG project CLEVER – Co-designing Smart Local Solutions for Exploiting Values and Enhancing Resilience, during 2018/2019.