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The political economy of space and Iran's regional balance
Hassan Afrakhteh , Mohammad Hajipour,
Volume 4, Issue 14 (2-2016)
Abstract
Introduction
Countries with a rentier economy are usually dependent on the export of raw materials. Such countries have a centralized political system and inefficient bureaucracy that incorporate a broader administrative division in one or two cities. Dependence on the global economy (Endogenous Development), and the lack of a democratic political system, provides good conditions of centralization in different aspects.
In the rentier political economy, market speculation has overcome on the redistribution of wealth in society and private sectors are mostly activating in non-manufacturing areas (rent). Economic and social imbalances in these countries made the political economy of space reveal a structural model of unbalanced regional and spatial patterns through the improvement of national economy.
The mechanism of this system and the process of capital accumulation in cities and their surrounding regions is going on in a way that as Harvey (1985) believes: "Unlike the capitalist competition in which all social actors are into the rational production of appropriate physical and social prospects for the accumulation of capital", in our country, public and quasi-public economy which is based on brokerage cannot make conditions for instructive competitions. Of course, it is acting in a way that everything done for the capital accumulation and surplus value may lead into unpleasant Physical- Spatial changes.
It seems that despite all the efforts made after the revolution in Iran to remove deprivation and establish regional balance, there are still examples of regional imbalances. Finding an appropriate answer to this fundamental question of "How big and effective has been the political economic model governing our country?" we have tried to present a spatial analysis of Iran's approach to the political economy of the last decade to explain the role of political economy of space on regional imbalance as assessing regional balance of the country.
Methodology
The survey done to get applied for observing planning and accounting systems of political economy in Iran, using descriptive-analytical and correlation methods.
In order to complete research database, the preliminary data collected by examining statistics and other statistical documents in the Statistical Center of Iran and Islamic parliament research center. The data have been sorted in the form of 28 indicators and variables. GEO DaTM software was used for drawing maps exhibiting Percentage distribution of wealth and power in different parts of the country. To determine rating and index score of the political economy of space a combined method of TOPSIS and Entropy has been used. The spatial autocorrelation of political economy and regional imbalance was calculated by Local Moran statistics in GIS 10. Estimating composite index of equilibrium level and regional inequality we have used COPRAS, a multiple criteria decision making model. This model was offered because of the presence of some positive and negative variables. Finally, in order to investigate the presence of any relation between political economy of space and regional inequalities ruling Iran and for the identification of the types of relations, linear regression in SPSS19 has been used.
Discussion and conclusion
Planning and decision- making are considered as systematic cause and effect of the political economy governing the implementation of space projects and programs. A question to which every restored geographical environment may confront is that "due to the time, how can the pattern and operation of political economy of space affect the structure of different areas to make them balanced or imbalanced? How much is the range of its effectiveness? And how can it change the direction?" In this way, Iran has been tested and analyzed to find a reasonable answer to this question.
Results from the analysis proved that despite the negative effects of lack of wealth on the structure of Iran geographical space, there is a limited span of attention and importance given to the more rational distributions. So far, wealth distribution and financing have been following a polar pattern.
Evaluating political and bargaining power in the aforementioned space among different areas, Tehran province, as one of the 31 divisions of the country, is dedicated to the highest rank of political weight in most indicators of territory and settlement (including villages and towns). In competition with other regions this priority of Tehran in the national space and its principal role in Iranian governments during different periods led to "Tehran's hegemonic political power centered in Tehran". Those patterns ruling the distribution of power and wealth between regions caused a tendency to the unipolar construction of the political economy of space. Consequently, polaroriented approach prevailed on space led to the formation of a regional space enjoying socioeconomic benefits in the range of areas of Tehran, Alborz and Isfahan. Because of these conditions, only a few developed areas can be seen in the whole area of the country which are increasingly and strongly affected by the devastating consequences of failures of so many backward areas.

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