Smart Government: An European Approach toward Building Sustainable and Secure Cities of Tomorrow

The term Smart Government often appears in correlation with the Smart City subject and is seen as one of its elements. In fact, while those two terms share common interests and focus on similar technological solutions, they are still separate subjects that can, but do not have to, result from each other. A Smart Government might be a part of a Smart City’s agenda, but for municipalities with an already well-modernized governing system, it is not a necessary premise. In such cases, a Smart Governance, which is one of a Smart City’s dimensions, might be considered in regard to upgrading some of the existing governing tools without tackling the matter of redefining administrative structures. Those subtle differences fuse together because the debate on digital transformation concerns numerous varying urbanization aspects that often show only the big picture of possibilities and, subsequently, are not specific enough to provide the cities with useful directions and priorities in the real agenda setting. In this context, the effort linked to restructuring even a small administrative faction in terms of Smart Government can be seen by the public and municipalities as simply overwhelming. Therefore, focusing on this subject exclusively and defining the current, city-specific demand on the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) -driven administrative system seems to be crucial in developing real working solutions in this field. The first part of this paper clarifies the definition of Smart Government by showing its specifics and fundamental rules from the European perspective. It also focuses on different structural implementation tools and presents a new approach toward Policy Cycle. The second part concentrates on crucial ICT components of a Smart Government. The last part lists some possible challenges that might occur throughout the implementation process. The paper ends with a summary presented in the form of a charter that exhibits the key points and priorities needed to establish an effective and sustainable Smart Government agenda.

The term Smart Government often appears in correlation with the Smart City subject and is seen as one of its elements. In fact, while those two terms share common interests and focus on similar technological solutions, they are still separate subjects that can, but do not have to, result from each other. A Smart Government might be a part of a Smart City’s agenda, but for municipalities with an already well-modernized governing system, it is not a necessary premise. In such cases, a Smart Governance, which is one of a Smart City’s dimensions, might be considered in regard to upgrading some of the existing governing tools without tackling the matter of redefining administrative structures. Those subtle differences fuse together because the debate on digital transformation concerns numerous varying urbanization aspects that often show only the big picture of possibilities and, subsequently, are not specific enough to provide the cities with useful directions and priorities in the real agenda setting. In this context, the effort linked to restructuring even a small administrative faction in terms of Smart Government can be seen by the public and municipalities as simply overwhelming. Therefore, focusing on this subject exclusively and defining the current, city-specific demand on the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) -driven administrative system seems to be crucial in developing real working solutions in this field. The first part of this paper clarifies the definition of Smart Government by showing its specifics and fundamental rules from the European perspective. It also focuses on different structural implementation tools and presents a new approach toward Policy Cycle. The second part concentrates on crucial ICT components of a Smart Government. The last part lists some possible challenges that might occur throughout the implementation process. The paper ends with a summary presented in the form of a charter that exhibits the key points and priorities needed to establish an effective and sustainable Smart Government agenda.