Perceptions of young Moroccans on the smart city

Abstract

In Morocco, the establishment of a smart city has become imperative, given the increase in the population of urban agglomerations with over one million inhabitants from 13.98 in 1960 to 22.65 in 2015. This new approach to city development sees citizens as a crucial element, provided they are actively involved and integrated into the transformation process. In this context, this study aims to explore citizens’ perceptions of the concept and importance of the smart city project as established in Agadir in 2022. To this end, we conducted a survey of 98 young people from the Moroccan city of Agadir. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire and analyzed in terms of percentages and statistical tests. The main findings suggest that young people have positive perceptions of the smart city, and the smart city concept is associated with their age, level of education, and digital technology knowledge. As for the democratization of access to technology, this is closely linked to the participants’ perceptions of the importance and nature of the smart city.