Kragujevac awarded at the smart city competition in South Korea

The city of Kragujevac participated in the Seoul Smart City Prize with the project "Voice of Citizens in Urban Planning," winning third place in the Human-CentriCity category. The award was given for the platform "Be Part of the Plan," which allows registered citizens to receive notifications via email, SMS, or Viber whenever an existing urban plan is being modified or a new one is being adopted in Kragujevac.

Thanks to this platform, anyone interested is notified as soon as an initiative to change the plan is launched, during early public reviews, and throughout public consultations. Citizens can visit the website to view the plans, enhancing the transparency of local government operations. Additionally, the platform provides a space for citizens to educate themselves about the purpose of urban planning, the planning system, and the importance of their involvement.

The Seoul Smart City Prize aims to promote an innovative yet inclusive model of smart cities that cares for vulnerable groups in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, driven by information and communication technology. This key mission underpins the two award categories, Tech-InnovaCity and Human-CentriCity, as WeGO and the Seoul Metropolitan Government believe that smart cities should be defined and measured by how people-oriented and technology-focused they are, rather than just by technological advancement.

A total of 280 submissions were received from around the world, and the award was accepted on behalf of Kragujevac by Deputy Mayor Dejan Ružić. The project "Voice of Citizens in Urban Planning," implemented by NALED, was funded by the Silk Fund of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), with support from the Faculty of Geography in Belgrade. Kragujevac was selected as a pilot local government for this initiative.