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Contested Understanding of Urban Governance a Case Study of Tehran, Iran

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Contested Understanding of Urban Governance a Case Study of Tehran, Iran Contested Understanding of Urban Governance A Case Study of Tehran, Iran Thesis by Zahed Shafiei In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Newcastle University September 2011 Abstract In recent years Iran has adopted a new form of urban governance, featuring a higher level of local autonomy, clarification and improvement of legal status and responsibilities, the development of new political and social organisations, and an enhanced professionalism. This thesis asks: ‗how is urban governance functioning in Iran?‘ and aims to answer this by assessing the process and structure of urban governance through a critical evaluation of how urban governance in the capital city of Tehran is understood by its various stakeholders. In doing so, it attempts to fill a gap in the literature, particularly the dearth of local governance studies in the Middle East, as well as providing general insights into what constitutes ‗good urban governance‘. To gain an initial overview, the research starts out with an appraisal of Tehran‘s governance based on UN-Habitat‘s Urban Governance Index (UGI). This tool allows the evaluation of local governance in Tehran through four dimensions: participation, accountability, equity and effectiveness. Based on the findings of this evaluation, as well as the method‘s limitations, a number of areas are identified as requiring deeper examination. The subsequent, central phase of analysis is thus based on interviews with eight different groups of stakeholders in the city including city executives, councillors, civic associations, citizens, urban experts and private sector actors. The findings indicate that despite the major shift towards decentralisation from 1997, local governance is still undermined by centralised decision-making, due to the continued involvement of central government ministries and departments in city management. A key challenge for local governance is thus to manage the attendant tensions between stakeholders. Local stakeholders expect to be given more space, institutional weight and autonomy in a process of devolution which would bring a more substantial transfer of authority and resources from central to local government, community groups and citizens. Key Words: Urban Governance, UN-Habitat UGI, election, municipality, City Council, citizen participation, Tehran. i Acknowledgements This research could not have been achieved without the contribution of a number of people, who need to be thanked. First of all I am grateful to my supervisors for the support and guidance they provided from the outset of this research. I am indebted to them for contributing invaluable and thoughtful information, and for their illuminating comments. Professor Ali Madanipour, my principle supervisor has always led the way as a constant source of wise advice and constructive feedback on various aspects of my research. Dr Paola Gazzola my second supervisor has been extremely helpful in developing my critical thinking and adding to my data collection and analysis skills. I would like to thank my PhD colleagues in School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, particularly Dr Elizabeth Brooks for her guidance and support with the editing process. Thanks also to Dr Jenny Pickerill and Dr Gavin Brown from the Department of Geography, University of Leicester for their guidance and advice at the early stages of the research project. Finally, heart-felt thanks and warmest love to my family. My father, Bahram, my mother, Zohreh, my wife, Maryam, my brothers, Mojtaba and Ebrahim, my sister Fatemeh and my son Erfan, who have patiently stood beside me and supported me throughout. I could not have experienced the enormous enjoyment and satisfaction achieved through having successfully completed this project in only three years, without the total, vigorous support and understanding of my family. ii Table of Contents Abstract i Acknowledgments ii Table of Contents iii List of Appendices vii List of Tables viii List of Figures x 1. Chapter 1: Research Contexts and Objectives 1.0 Introduction 2 1.1 City Governance Transformation in Iran 3 1.2 The Context of the Study and Issues 5 1.3 Research Aims and Associated Questions 7 1.4 Research Strategy 8 1.5 Structure of Thesis 9 2. Chapter 2: Governance Definitions, Principles an Themes 2.0 Introduction 12 2.1 Definitions of Governance 12 2.2 Defining good governance 17 2.3 Accomplishing good governance 18 2.4 Four Principles for ‗good governance‘ 24 2.4.1 Citizen Participation and Involvement 24 2.4.2 Accountability 31 2.4.3 Effectiveness 36 2.4.4 Equity 39 2.5 Approaches in Governance Assessment 41 2.6 Conclusion 50 iii 3. Chapter 3: Research Design and Methodology 3.0 Introduction 53 3. 1 Qualitative and Quantitative Research 53 3. 2 Data Collection Approach 55 3.2.1 The UN Urban Governance Approach 57 3.2.2 The Interview as a method 62 3.3 Selection of Respondents and application of interview 63 3.4 Data Analysis Approach 67 3.4.1 Urban Governance Index 67 3.4.2 Interview Analysis 70 3.5 Positionality 73 3.6 Ethical Issues and Reflections 74 3.8 Constraints and Permissions 76 3.9 Conclusion 77 4. Chapter 4: Governance Outlook in Tehran 4.0 Introduction 80 4.1 Introduction on governance in Tehran 80 4.1.1 General Description of Tehran 81 4.1.2 Urban Governance and Participation before the Islamic Revolution 8 2 4.1.3 Current Key Formal Stakeholders in City Governance 86 4.2 Governance Assessment through UN-Habitat (UGI) 101 4.2.1 Effectiveness 101 4.2.2 Equity 108 4.2.3 Participation 113 4.2.4 Accountability 118 4.3 Tehran Governance international ranking 121 4.4 Assessing Governance in Tehran 124 4.5 Conclusion 129 iv 5. Chapter 5: The Elected Council (Islamic City Council) 5.0 Introduction 132 5.1 Role of the ICC 133 5.1.1 Decentralisation and local autonomy 133 5.1.2 Accountability and Transparency 136 5.1.3 Gender Equality in City Governance 144 5.2 Barriers and Challenges 149 5.2.1 Political limitations 150 5.2.2 Structural and Technical 154 5.2.3 Institutional and Legislative 158 5.3 Conclusion 161 6. Chapter 6: Voter Turnout 6.0 Introduction 164 6.1 Electoral Participation in Governance 164 6.2 Voter Turnout in the ICC Election 168 6.2.1 Combined Elections 171 6.2.2 Enhancing Public Awareness and Trust 175 6.2.3 Well-judged and Fair Selection of Candidates 180 6.2.4 Enhancing the ICC‘s institutional position 183 6.3 Conclusion 185 7. Chapter 7: Selecting the Mayor 7.0 Introduction 188 7.1 Selection of mayor by the secretary of state (Pre-shift method) 189 7.2 Selection of mayor through the ICC (Existing pattern) 191 7.2.1 Strengthened position of the ICC and the state of accountability 191 7.2.2 Proper choice and avoiding the politicisation of the municipality 193 7.3 Selection of mayor through direct election 196 v 7.3.1 Good governance principles and devolution 199 7.3.2 Enhancement of the mayoral position 203 7.4 Conclusion 206 8. Chapter 8: Neighbourhood Councils (public forums) and Civic Associations 8.0 Introduction 209 8.1 Neighbourhood Councils 210 8.1.1 Strengths and Benefits of Neighbourhood Council 210 8.1.2 Limitations and Barriers of Neighbourhood Council 217 8.2 Civic Associations 223 8.2.1 Strengths and benefits of Civic Associations 223 8.2.2 Limitations and weaknesses of Civic Associations 224 8.3 Conclusion 233 9. Chapter 9: Research Discussion 9.0 Introduction 237 9.1 Review on UGI assessment 237 9.2 Obstacles to good governance 241 9.2.1 Centralised dominance: government or governance? 242 9.2.2 Integrated urban management or management of urban units? 246 9.2.3 The direction of urban governance: forwards or backwards? 249 9.2.4 Technocratic rationality or democratic principles? 252 9.3 Competition or collaboration? 255 9.3.1 The relationship between central and local government 255 9.3.2 Relationships between the ICC and municipality 259 9.4 Conclusion 262 vi 10. Chapter 10: Research Conclusions and Recommendations 10.0 Introduction 265 10.1 Achievement of the Research Aims 265 10.2 Responses to the Research Questions 266 10.3 Recommendations 276 10.4 Research Contribution 278 10.5 Limitations of research 280 10.6 Future research 281 10.7 Conclusion 281 List of Abbreviations 283 List of Appendices 284 Appendix 1: Information Sheet for Participants 285 Appendix 2: Themes of Interviews 287 Appendix 3: Consent Form for Participants in Research Study 288 Appendix 4: Urban Governance Index: Methodology Guidelines 289 Appendix 5: Initial findings and Calculation 305 Appendix 6: Urban Governance Index Calculation for Tehran 313 Appendix 7: A draft of the consumer satisfaction survey accomplished by 317 the Municipality Appendix 8: List of Interviews 321 Appendix 9: Transcript of one interview in Persian 324 References 332 vii List of Tables Table 2.1 Comparing the functions of the new and old government 14 Table 2.2 UN habitat urban governance indicators project categories and measures 19 of ‗Good‘ governance Table 2.3 UNDP–TUGI‘s five-point vision for cities 20 Table 2.4 Principles, objectives and practical measures for the inclusive city 30 Table 2.5 Citizen Voice and organizational responsiveness 32 Table 2.6 Principles of Accountability 35 Table 2.7 A practical guideline for enhancing governance effectiveness 38 Table 2.8 Principles, Objectives and Practical Measures for the Inclusive City 40 Table 2.9 Principles and indicators for the GOFORGOLD Index 44 Table 3.1 Research Outline 56 Table 3.2 The UN-Habitat Urban Governance Index:
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