Analysis of Intraregional Disparities of Development in Mazandaran Ostan
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Geography and Environmental Planning, 21th Year, vol. 40, No.4, Winter 2011 Received: 12/5/1388 Accepted: 30/1/1389 PP: 13-28 Analysis of Intraregional Disparities of Development in Mazandaran Ostan F. Mozaffar Assistant Professor of Architecture and Urban Studies, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran. Y. Aghaei M. A. School of Architecture and Urban Studies, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran. M. Taghvaei Associate Professor of Geography and Urban Planning, University of Isfahan, Iran. R. Shaykh Baygloo* Ph.D. Student in Geography and Urban Planning, University of Isfahan, Iran. Abstract Integrated regional development is an important issue in regional planning. The Ostans of Iran are in different levels of development in which interregional and intraregional inequality is obvious, and Mazandaran Ostan is a salient example for intraregional inequality. In spite of s regional policy based on reducing the development gap between different regions andۥIran creating a relative balance in regional development, yet some regions suffer from lack of basic services and facilities. To adopt appropriate development actions for a region, planners should first evaluate sub-regions as regards existent level of development. The aim of this study is to analyze the Shahrestans of Mazandaran Ostan with respect to indicators of development. For this purpose, fifty indicators were chosen, submitted to factor analysis, of which five factors were extracted related to 33 indicators: infrastructural factor, industrial-agricultural factor, health factor, educational factor and communicative factor- which account for nearly 76% of the variance. Results showed that there are obvious differentiations among Shahrestans in development level; so, it is urgent to improve some indicators -especially in which inequity is critical- in low-level Shahrestans which are the Shahrestans of Galoogah and Jooybar in this study. Key words: Integrated regional development, Regional planning, Iran, Mazandaran Ostan, Factor analysis. Introduction recognizing the place-specific nature of Development is strongly shaped by economic and environmental issues and processes that occur on the ground, in outcomes. They are also aware that specific regions (Scott and Storper, 2003). environmental cause and effect cannot be Regional development can be defined as artificially limited by the political or the dynamic aspect of a regional system, geographic boundaries of cities (Parham, or more precisely, as the changes that take 1996). Integrated planning, answers the place in the states of the regional system as needs of a sustainable development time progresses (Folmer et al., 1977). program by being dedicated to local National governments have exhibited an identity recovery. It is substantially the increasing concern for problems of search for the maximum equilibrium for regional development. Governments are the territory and its human communities Corresponding author: +98 913 207 7563 Email: [email protected] 14 Geography and Environmental Planning, 21th Year, vol. 40, No.4, Winter 2011 (Alexander, 2006). The goal of sustainable Some studies which have focused on human development is to create an intraregional disparities and regional enabling environment where all people can development are as follows: act to improve the quality of their lives, Reuter analyzed the development and generation after generation (United effects of intra-provincial regional Nations Centre for Regional Development, disparities in China between 1989 and 2001). It may be argued that the policy of 2001. In his paper, the impact of the regional development will never be observed intra-provincial disparities on effective, unless the following is provided: regional development has been addressed. • Clear delimitation of powers and A decomposition analysis showed that responsibilities between regions and the intra-provincial disparities contribute capital, as well as among intra-regional significantly to total regional inequality levels of power; (Reuter, 2004, 1). Also, in similar studies • Financial independence, or sufficiency by Khan et al. (1993), Khan and Riskin of local budgets for local self-government (2001), Tsui (1993, 1998a, 1998b), bodies to discharge their powers; Hermann-Pillath, Kirchner and Pan • Promotion of development of (2002), Gustafsson and Li (2002), Akita backward regions and regions by fiscal (2000, 2001, 2003) and Song, Chu and and investment support (Fedyuk and Chao (2000), the common understanding Bychenko, 2009). is that intraregional disparities make a Regional planning in Iran during the large proportion of total regional first decade following the Revolution (the disparities. Khan et al. (1993: 66), for 1980s) was based on reducing the example, argue that “a careful analysis of development gap between different regional differences in sources of regions and creating a relative balance in inequality could be of much help in regional development, special attention to devising policies for improving income the backward areas, control of urban and distribution.” rural system, preparing the foundation for There are not enough voluminous hierarchical distribution of services and studies about interregional inequalities in infrastructure in the entire territory. Mazandaran Ostan, and analyses of the (Sheikhi, 1998) In the second decade after pattern of intraregional disparities are in the Revolution (beginning in 1991), a new short supply. The main reason for this direction appeared in the regional could be the high level of aggregation used planning. The main differences include: in most studies about the subject, which • Change of the direction of regional focus on disparities between macro- planning from national and interregional regions using Ostan level data. Therefore, levels to intra-regional, regional and sub- this paper is to provide a measurement of regional levels. the regional component of intraregional • Increased attention to organizing plans disparities in Mazandaran Ostan over for rural areas. geographic space which focuses on • Attention to identifying potential and disparities between Shahrestans. capacities of regions for development An Overview of Mazandaran Ostan (Sheikhi, 2001). Mazandaran is a Caspian Ostan in the north and covers an area of 23,756 sq. km. Analysis of Intraregional Disparities of Development in Mazandaran Ostan 15 It is located on the Southern coast of the The city of Sari is the capital of Caspian Sea, and is bordered clockwise by Mazandaran Ostan. The Ostan's four Golestan, Semnan and Tehran Ostans. The largest Shahrestans are Sari, Babol, Amol Ostan also lays Qazvin and Gilan to the and Qaem Shahr. (table 1) The population west. It is one of the most populous Ostans of the Ostan has been steadily growing by population density and one of the during the last years. The proportion of wealthiest regarding diverse Natural urban population to the total population of Resources (Bookrags Staff, 2006). the Ostan in 1996 reached to 45.90%, Mazandaran is divided into 16 while in 2006 increased to 53.18%, while Shahrestans which are as follows: Amol, proportion of rural population decreased Babol, Babolsar, Behshahr, Tonekabon, from 54.10% in 1996 to 46.82 in 2006 Jooybar, Chaloos, Ramsar, Sari, (Management and Planning Organization Savadkooh, Qaem Shahr, Galoogah, of Mazandaran, 2006; Statistical Centre of Mahmood Abad, Neka, Noor and Noshahr. Iran, 2006). Table 1: Area and Population of Shahrestans of Mazandaran Ostan Shahrestan Area (Km2) population Amol 3074.40 346775 Babol 1578.10 469591 Babolsar 345.70 175302 Behshahr 1416.27 156195 Tonekabon 2043.20 194719 Jooybar 285.50 70419 Chaloos 1597.30 122863 Ramsar 729.80 68163 Sari 3685.30 495360 Savadkooh 2078.00 67920 Qaem Shahr 458.50 295135 Galoogah 451.23 39461 Mahmood Abad 262.80 90502 Neka 1358.80 105652 Noor 2675.00 105894 Noshahr 1716.50 118481 Source: Management and Planning Organization of Mazandaran, 2006 16 Geography and Environmental Planning, 21th Year, vol. 40, No.4, Winter 2011 Spatial Distribution of cities of level with respect to composite index of Mazandaran Ostan during 1986 and 1996 development? exhibits concentration of urban population • To determine priorities for future in central parts of Ostan. Although development actions. distribution of population and urban settlements of Mazandaran Ostan is more Methodology suitable in comparison to arid and semiarid In order to reduce the dimensionality of areas of Iran, but [in recent decades] there the data sets and thus to explain the have been great economical and social relations among the 50 indicators of changes in four large cities in central parts development, the multivariate statistical of the Ostan; So that, Sari, Babol, Amol method of factor analysis was used. and Qaemshahr are generating a regional Factor analysis is an extremely flexible megalopolis (Lottfi, 2008, 61-63). From tool for finding order in large geographical the viewpoint of position and distribution data matrices, either inductively or as tests of main economic activities, it appears that of hypotheses (Johnston, 1986). Factor there is forming a tangible kind of local analysis is a statistical procedure for specialization among mentioned micro- transforming (observations by variables) a megalopolises of the region. So that, data matrix so that the variables in the new administrative centers have been matrix are uncorrelated. Factor analysis concentrated in Sari and Amol with its does not identify as many new