Analyzing City Development Strategy (CDS) Indices using a Strategic Planning Approach (Case Study: Zanjan City)

The rapid growth of population and its concentration in cities along with the inefficiency of comprehensive urban plans for mitigating such problems have emphasized the necessity of considering novel approaches in this regard for developing countries. The current study analyzes and evaluates City Development Strategy (CDS) Indices using a strategic planning approach in Zanjan City. The main objective of the current study is to analyze the state of indicators of city development strategies (CDS) in Zanjan City in order to identify and understand the status of the strategic pattern and propose strategies and method for improving these indictors. The current study is an applied one which utilizes a descriptive analytical methodology. Moreover, the required data are obtained using library studies and surveys with a statistical population of 430,871. Using the adjusted Cochran’s formula, 322 participants were selected as the sample of the study, who were asked to complete the questionnaire of the study, which was developed based on the opinions of 60 authority figures of the city. The obtained data were analyzed using the SWOT technique, and the quantitative matrix of strategic planning was used for ranking the strategies. The findings from the matrix for evaluation of internal and external factors show that the final score of internal factors is 2.26 while the final score of external factors is equal to 2.40, which are both less than 2.5. Therefore, it can be surmised that the indicators of city development strategies (CDS) are weak in such a way that the internal-external (IE) matrix for the state of City Development Strategy (CDS) Indices shows that among the four state of aggressive, conservative, defensive, and competitive, these indices are at the defensive position. Therefore, the City Development Strategy (CDS) Indices for Zanjan City are at the worst possible state. The final results obtained from the quantitative matrix of strategic planning propose four defensive strategies, including WT1 (establishing cooperation and collaboration among urban organizations and authoritative bodies for city development), WT4 (the need for urban organizations and bodies to follow the law and prevent the interference from groups which are irrelevant to the development and management of the city), WT3 (increasing the power of the city council and citizen activists to increase the participation of citizens), and WT2 (considering environmental issues in order to realize sustainable development andcreate a healthy city), as the main strategies that can be implemented.