Concept of Smart Cities Development Strategy in the Western Balkans

If we keep in mind that we live in an age marked by digitalization, industry 5.0, as well as the accelerated population growth in urban regions, it is easy to conclude that the concept of smart cities is a very relevant topic for research. The aim of this paper is to examine whether and to what extent the concept of smart cities has been implemented in the city administration in the countries of the Western Balkans. For that purpose, a research was conducted, which includes surveying employed in various administrations in the following cities: Belgrade, Nis, Kragujevac, Trebinje, Podgorica, Herceg Novi, City of Skopje. The data indicate the fact that the respondents from Belgrade, Trebinje and Herceg Novi have the most knowledge and the most transparent insight into the data concerning smart city projects, while the respondents from Podgorica are the least knowledgeable about the entire issue. The general conclusion is that, although there are examples of cities with very positive progress in the field of implementation of smart city development strategies, there are still numerous problems in the implementation of projects in the countries of the Western Balkans.