Foundations of Spatial Injustice in Iran

The main purpose of organizing space in each country is, firstly, providing an optimal service to the maximum of citizens and, secondly, managing the people who live in a country. Despite numerous attempts, geographical space of Iran is away from the spatial justice and the center-periphery pattern is the dominant pattern of its spatial relationships. The aim of this study was to investigate the foundations of spatial injustice in Iran. This paper with analytical–descriptive method and relying on the library resources tried to identify and classify the factors affecting the spatial injustice in Iran.

Spatial injustice in Iran comes from two main areas, including the natural, cultural, social, and economic conditions of any geographic location (the inherent characteristics of the regions), and the political economy of space, decisions of policy makers, and economic planners. The peripheral areas with 16 provinces and central areas with 14 provinces (including Alborz province) form the political space of Iran. Peripheral areas of the country include about 50% of area and 50.7% of the population, showing that 50% of development of the country should be concentrated in border areas so that regional balances are established in the spatial pattern of Iran. The focus of facilities and services in the center causes the remoteness of some provinces and their exclusion from these benefits.