Generally, over 30% of the population live in large cities, which makes paying attention to the economic and social aspects of living in large cities inevitable, reads an article by Nasser Zakeri, an economic analyst, published by the Persian daily Shargh.
The translation of the article follows:
Metropolises have a special relationship with national economy in healthy economies; the national economy provides great opportunities for gaining income, growth and prosperity in large cities. Metropolises, in turn, provide special services to the national economy and help the growth of national economy.
Large cities manage a significant part of the domestic and foreign trade and receive a share of their revenues and put a percentage of which at the disposal of residents in the form of tax and duties. The management of metropolises also tries to make urban life more pleasant for residents and improve their wellbeing by facilitating a good income.
But in our country, economic relations of metropolises and national economy have become complicated. On the one hand, the government is forced to reduce its spending and eliminate sections from its budget following a decline in oil revenues, that’s why the share of large cities from the government’s general budget has reduced to a minimum.
On the other hand, revenues of urban management in metropolitan areas have reduced sharply because of the economic recession and poverty over the past few decades. In other words, special economic conditions have compelled metropolises to undermine their prospects in order to survive in the short term and as a result, life has become more difficult for their residents.
In addition, the management of large cities undertakes obligations in the cultural-political environment; these obligations have no effect on the welfare of citizens, both in the short and long term.
Shortcomings in public transportation system, traffic congestions, residents spending untold hours behind red lights, or violence and aggressive behavior becoming very common in everyday lives are all to blame on the difficulties that the national economy imposes on metropolitan areas.
Years-long recession has become a dominant feature of the national economy. Just as the recession has put a wrench into the works of manufacturing sector and given rise to unemployment, it has also disrupted the lives of metropolises.
In an economy enveloped in recession, metropolises turn into structures that can neither benefit from the national economy, nor contribute to economic growth, just like a large industrial unit in a recession-stricken economy.
Metropolises resemble large enterprises in production and services sectors that can have a large share in the national economy if they were dynamic and active, but in recessionary conditions, they only engender unemployment and waste resources. They aggravate the problems of the national economy and impose a heavy burden on the weak national economy.
The continuation of recession, thanks to the imposition of sanctions and internal mismanagement, has imposed enormous costs on the economy.
Inflation, shutdown of manufacturing units, a rise in unemployment and population living below the poverty line, systematic destruction of the environment, loss of oil and non-oil export markets and the widening gap between Iran and regional countries are the consequences of recession.
However, metropolises get stuck in the recession trap, which can be described as the “closure of the largest economic and service units in the country”. It is undoubtedly the gravest loss that the current recession has imposed on our economy; this closure has impacted the lives and income of 30% of the country’s population directly and affected the lives of another 70% indirectly.
The return of national economy to the era of economic prosperity and interaction with the world can create a valuable opportunity for metropolises to achieve sustainable income.
