Strategic planning for spatial governance: a case study of the Central District in Arak County, Iran

ABSTRACT

Spatial governance involves studying the relationship between trade, and politics, resolving tensions, and harmonizing various social forces within a spatial domain within the framework of democratic governance models. The importance of this approach in space management stems from the increasing delegation of government responsibilities and powers to the non-governmental sector. Political space managers need to use strategic plans to achieve sustainable development and spatial justice. The general objectives of this research are an understanding of strategic planning and to apply it in one of the aspects of regional development, to explain the steps and process of strategic planning, and also how to determine and prioritize strategies. This research is descriptive in nature and applied-developmental in terms of purpose. The method of collecting information is a library, face-to-face interviews with experts, personal observation, and questionnaire completion. SWOT analysis method has been used to determine the importance and weighting of internal and external factors and to formulate strategies. A quantitative strategic planning matrix (QSPM) has been used to measure the attractiveness of each of the desired strategies. The results of the study indicate that conservative strategies are proposed as executive strategies in the Central District of Arak County, Iran.

KEYWORDS:

• Strategic planning
• political management of space
• spatial governance
• strategy
• strategic plan development
• spatial planning and governance

Acknowledgments

I am grateful to all the managers and experts who provided valuable feedback and guidance during the course of this research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Health houses are places for providing primary health care services in urban and rural centres.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Masoome Mahdii

Masoome Mahdii is born in 1993 and currently residing in Iran, she hold an undergraduate degree in Political Geography from Tehran University. Furthering she education, she pursued a graduate degree in Political Organizing of Space from Tarbiat Modares University. She primary area of research is the strategic planning and political management of space, with a keen interest in the field of hydropolitics.