Defining indicators of informal settlements in Iran

Introduction Informal settlements in urban areas are a reflection of the lack of proper planning. Planning in general concept means an attempt to pick the best programs to achieve specific objectives (Shieh، 2009:86)، While planning has not been to meet the needs of all residents in the city and can be expressed in planning، have been ignored the urban poor. Accordingly discussion on informal settlements at first needs the comprehensive planning، that indicators as the basis of a comprehensive planning and essential tools to express different aspects of economic، social، environmental and physical settlements have a special place in the plan. Study of informal settlements firstly needs to comprehensive planning، Donor agencies and local policy makers، in particular in the developing world، require better information about the different conditions in shelter to implement effective urban policies and reduce inequalities. In the current situation the main issues of informal settlements in Iran is the lack of exponent indicators of this type of settlement. So that the recognizing of informal settlements has become to personalized process and follow certain principles. That this issue have been caused by improper attitudes and misunderstanding associated with identifying informal settlements. 2- Theoretical bases Informal settlements are the residence of part of the urban population in third world that outside of the formal markets land and housing and the basis of norms and special promises is made to their resident’s s in such places (Piran، 2002:8). That as a complex phenomenon are caused in the field due to the effects of the interactions are caused by multiple factors، that sometimes detection of transposition relative to each other is difficult and mislead our in receive and identify appropriate solutions to resolve the problem (Omakchi. 2002:57). Neglect of policymakers and sometimes and denial of making process in the surrounding of some town and cities and extension of urban poverty causes with most delay and after the fixing some of informal settlements be dealt with this problem (Taherkhani، 2009:36). In the past decades usual pattern of life in the communities of informal settlements and conditions and method of its creation has changed. Allotment of people who gravitate on informal settlements of city nearby continuously have been increasing and class households history، origin and social status of them were different. Indeed the communities of informal settlements were having two functions that linked together. First is serving as a model for adaptation to unemployment، and second function is becoming poorer the informal settlements that causes divided the housing of informal settlements that built an overnight and Lease or sell part of it، is as a mechanism or mechanisms to cope with poverty. (Piran، 2007:18-19). 3- Discussion In these research sixteen major features in the informal settlements of Iran has been investigated in three general categories، social and demographic indicators، economic Indicators and physical and environmental indicators in the city of Sanandaj، Kermanshah، Bandar Abbas، Zahedan، Ahvaz، Qom، Karaj. Indeed According to available information resources of informal settlements in each city، the feature of most urban show the distinction of informal settlements with elsewhere in city select as major features of informal settlements of Iran. According to the results of existing data features such as household size، the population density، dependency burden، income، unemployment rate، how to build، price of land and housing، quality of buildings and structural stability، the low per capita residential، access to facilities، network of roads and streets، shortage of therapeutic land use، Shortage of educational land use، and property problems can to consider as main features of informal settlements. And the features such as the sex ratio and the immigration ratio cannot to consider as main features of informal settlements. 4- Conclusion and Suggestions This research shows that although according to the characteristics of each city and the informal settlements، the settlements have unique characteristics and indicators، but general indicators such as quantitative and qualitative characteristics of housing، infrastructure، Common social and economic criteria can be defined for the settlements. Facilities below the city average، low quality housing and informal structure of the building، inadequate health، high density، per capita urban poor، inappropriate location، household economy is weak and dependent on the informal sector of the economy، determined demographic characteristics and captured security، as general indicators are common features.