Assessment of Development Level of Sub-provinces of Iran using MCDM Methods

Proper identification of backward regions is crucial for forming the reliable basis of national and regional development strategies to increase the overall growth rate and decrease intra- regional and inter-regional disparities; therefore, it is very necessary to comprehensively assess the status of regional development with regard to different dimensions of development. The ranking of regions according to degree of development is often treated as the problem of the multi-criteria classification of alternatives. This problem has been solved by applying different methods. The present analysis highlights the fact that Iran witnesses uneven development across different regions. Most of sub-provinces (64% of all sub-provinces) are at the below average level of development. These regions require concerted planned efforts to overcome obstacles to growth and consequently to improve their development level.