Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• Amer Nikpour ¹
• Morteza Rezazadeh ²
• Fatemeh Allahgholitabar Nesheli ²

¹ Assistant Professor, Department of Geography and Urban Planning, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar

² MSc in Geography and Urban Planning, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar

Abstract

Introduction
One of the most important urban problems is the formation of a phenomenon called urban poverty. Urban poverty is a multidimensional phenomenon, and urban dwellers suffer from many disadvantages, including lack of access to employment opportunities, housing and infrastructure, lack of social security, and access to personal health, education, and security, urban poverty is not limited to these characteristics and refers to unstable conditions, which can lead to vulnerabilities and disability. Living in impoverished cities means an economy that is produced to survive. Urban poverty is the transmission of a huge economic shock that usually occurs through the labor market and job loss. Poverty scope should be defined as the spatial representation of poverty in urban areas. Today, in trying to achieve human development, measuring and determining urban poverty is an issue that is pursued in policy-making and human development management in many countries, and this requires the adoption of scientific methods, especially in the geographical determination of urban slums and it’s through the use of statistical methods and the definition of appropriate indexes to determine the different dimensions of urban poverty.
Therefore, in this study, while trying to define urban poverty and its main dimensions, we try to obtain an accurate knowledge of the geographical features of urban poverty and its dimensions in the study area.
 
Methodology
The present type of research is applied and in compiling this research, documentary method, library study to collect existing views, theories and experiences and descriptive-analytical method to study the spatial pattern of poverty in Babol have been used. The data used from the statistical blocks of 1390 were obtained from the Statistics Center of Iran. GIS software has been used to extract and classify the data of this research. In this study, 25 indexes related to urban poverty have been used in two levels of neighborhoods and urban blocks. The indexes used in this study are examined in three economic, social and physical dimensions. In order to identify poverty zones, the desired indexes were first calculated at the level of statistical blocks. Then, all statistical blocks were examined according to the desired field through Hot Spot Analysis tool from Spatial Statistics Tools and based on it, spatial analysis of urban poverty indexes was performed on the scale of statistical blocks.
 
Results and discussion
Spatial analysis of urban poverty:
The economic dimension of poverty
The results of spatial analysis showed that the spatial distribution of the city did not have a specific order. The central part of the city, especially neighborhoods 6, 16 and the western part of the city (neighborhood 15) are in the most favorable conditions in terms of economic welfare. In contrast, the north-west and southeast of the city suffer from widespread poverty. The findings also show that more than 23% of the city's population is in relative poverty and 1.7% is in absolute poverty, with a population of 19,5880 in 19.4% of the city's area. In general, the population living in poor economic conditions and experiencing some form of poverty is slightly higher than those in relative or absolute welfare.
The social dimension of poverty
The findings show that more than 36 percent of the city's area is socially poor and relatively poor, accounting for about 29.9 percent of the city's population. Spatially, this amount of population often resides on the northeastern, southern and southwestern margins of Babol. Like the economic dimension of poverty, in the social dimension, the central districts of the city are in a better position than in other areas; In contrast, neighborhoods No. 22, 19, 18 and 5 (Map No. 3) are among the neighborhoods with high poverty rates.
The physical dimension of poverty
The results showed that the southern and northeastern margins of the city, such as economic and social dimensions, are in unfavorable conditions. In terms of spatial dominance, neighborhoods 19, 18 and 11 are in poor physical condition. In contrast, neighborhoods 6, 8, 16 and 13, which are located in the central part of the city, are in relatively good condition. On a city scale, more than 35 percent of the city's population lives in areas of the city that have relative or absolute physical poverty. This population lives in 45.4% of the city's area.
The final pattern of urban poverty
The final model of poverty to identify the main areas of poverty in the city of Babol is the result of spatial integration of 25 indexes in the three dimensions of economic, social and physical. The results showed that small areas of poverty can be seen in the northern and northwestern areas of the city, but the main areas of poverty can be seen in the northeastern, southeastern and western areas. Poverty in the city of Babol has a population of 47,140, ​​or 35.2% of the total population. In terms of area, these areas cover more than 43% of the total area of ​​the city. In contrast, most of the city's central areas, such as neighborhoods 6, 8, and 16, are in good economic, social, and physical condition. It should be noted that only 28.3% of the city's population and 21.34% of the city's area are in good condition, which indicates that most of the city's space is facing many problems in various economic, social and physical fields.
 
Conclusion
The complexity of urban systems and the relationships and interactions between them lead to the formation of various phenomena in urban and metropolitan areas. Spatial inequality is one of these urban phenomena, examples of which are urban poverty. This article identifies the spatial pattern of different dimensions of poverty in the city of Babol. The results of spatial analysis of urban poverty indexes in the city of Babol showed most of the city of Babol is facing many problems in various economic, social and physical fields.

Keywords

• Spatial pattern
• Zoning
• Dimensions of poverty
• Urban poverty
• Babol

Main Subjects

• Urban Planning