مصطفی طالشی

Purpose- This study tries to evaluate rural governance and identify its effective factors in a rural area, around Karaj Metropolis, for the achievement of local governance in central Iran. Design/Methodology/Approach - In terms of goal and nature, it is practical, while with regards to its methodology, it serves as a survey. The statistical populations of this research include 53 rural managers of rural settlements as rural governors (Dehyar), 105 rural councils, and 366 heads of village households, selected based on classification sampling within a multi-stage process. Both techniques of PROMETHEE and Analytic Network Process (ANP) have been employed for analysis, level evaluation, and classification of governance in the studied rural area. Findings- Based on the parametric method, results show that out of 53 studied local government, 53% had good governance; 25%, average governance; and 22%, weak governance. Furthermore, based on ANP Technique, the rural district (Dehestan) of Adran had the highest governance rank, while the rural district of Kamal Abad had the lowest. In general, the findings show that governance level in the studied local governments were quite desirable. Research limitations/Implications- Governance is a multidimensional issue with various definitions and theories thereof the villagers’ attitude towards rural governance and its indicators is restricted. Practical implications- In the study area, rural governance is in a good position, but some of the rural governance components and indicators are in an unsatisfactory and critical situation and require serious attention for improvement. Originality/Value- So far, there has been little attention paid to rural governance in the cities, especially in the peripheral regions of metropolitan areas. Accordingly, the present study is of considerable importance.

Purpose: One of such changes is the rural sprawl and its physical-spatial consequences in rural areas and their surrounding lands which has led to land use change in agricultural lands, gardens and less planed physical changes. Design/methodology/approach: This study was conducted in a descriptive-analytical method using field works, regular interviews and monitoring of satellite images and GIS maps. This study sought to identify and explain the natural consequences of rural sprawl in the physical area of villages and their surroundings during a 20-year period from 1995 to2016. The study area included 24 large rural settlements around Hamadan County with an average rural population of 2,800 people in areas with farmlands and gardens. Finding: The findings showed that rural sprawl has resulted in unplanned proximity and intermingling of rural-urban functions in rural settlements, physical changes in surrounding rural settlements, changes in diversity and composition of rural land uses, changes in physical structure of rural areas, and increased number of single-family residential units and villas. Research limitations/implications: Difficulty in gathering data about the rural areas’ physical changes and access to data and documentation of some organizations and interviews with some groups were among the challenges of the study. Practical implications: Management based on settlement systems of suburban towns and villages in the form of rural-urban ties and metropolitan area of Hamadan (in macro level), integrated management based on legal limits of the villages and their immediate areas, regulatory and more planned intervention through compliance of the uses with the structures and functions of the villages were some of the recommendations in the managerial and planning level. Originality/value: There have been a limited number of studies on emerging concepts and phenomena in the villages surrounding the metropolises and big cities. Therefore, it was necessary to conduct a study and discuss the consequences of rural sprawl as a phenomenon in villages round cities.