Smart City for Civic Participation: A Conceptual Framework

The emergence of Information and Communication Technology has allowed the transformation of urban governance into smart governance, leading cities to fulfill their mission and develop their processes more efficiently and effectively. In this context, civic participation has become fundamental to the success of smart city initiatives. In this vein, this article aims to investigate how smart city initiatives promote civic participation through smart governance. After a systematic review of the literature, the antecedents, moderators and mechanisms associated with this relationship were identified. The antecedents or structural factors are: technological, political & socio-economic and local government contexts. Furthermore, digital exclusion and citizens’ educational background are proposed as instrumental factors. This research concludes that to increase civic participation it is essential to address issues like the digital divide and provide citizen education. Lastly, it is concluded that smart governance is a key mechanism through which smart city initiatives can enable civic participation.