Assessing stakeholder perceptions of natural resource management alignment with good governance indices: a case study of the eastern region of Golestan Province

Background and objectives: Golestan province, located in the northern part of Iran, covers an area of 20,367 square kilometers, accounting for 1.3% of the country's total area. Unfortunately, the natural resources of Golestan province have been under threat in recent decades due to deforestation, excessive livestock grazing, and other human activities. As a result, the province faces significant challenges in this regard. The considerable depletion of natural resources, coupled with environmental crises such as floods and droughts, highlights the need for a detailed investigation and research into the management state of natural resources in the province. This research aims to improve the situation by addressing and resolving the existing problems, ultimately enhancing the management of natural resources in Golestan province. The present study seeks to evaluate the model of good governance as a novel theoretical approach in the field of natural resource management. Specifically, the research aims to assess the current state of natural resource management in the eastern regions of Golestan province and its compliance with, as well as proximity to, the criteria of good governance.
Methodology: In the current research, the natural resources departments in the eastern region of Golestan province were selected as the level of analysis. This includes the cities of Ramyan, Minodasht, Kalaleh, Galikesh, Maraveh Tappeh, and Gonbad kavous. The focus of the analysis was on the users and beneficiaries of natural resources. Cochran's formula was employed to determine the required sample size. Based on this calculation, the estimated sample size was determined to be 189 samples. After receiving and reviewing the questionnaires, a total of 177 valid questionnaires were accepted for statistical analysis. Next, the prepared questionnaires were distributed among the users and beneficiaries of natural resources. Due to difficulties in accessing the target community, the research utilized available samples to answer the questions and complete the questionnaires. The research employed the one-sample t-test to analyze the governance indicators in natural resource management and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to compare the level of good governance in natural resource management among the surveyed cities.
Results: The obtained results revealed that among the seven indicators used to assess good governance, four indicators, namely participation, responsibility, efficiency and effectiveness, and the consensus index, received higher scores compared to the theoretical average, while the remaining indicators scored lower. Specifically, the participation and consensus indicators achieved the highest scores of 3.3838 and 3.7333, respectively, while the rule of law and justice index and the transparency index obtained the lowest scores, averaging 2.2551 and 2.2570, respectively. When comparing the governance scores across different departments, it was found that the cities of Ramyan and Maraveh Tappeh exhibited the best and worst good governance conditions, with average scores of 3.2 and 2.12, respectively. The results of Lon's test demonstrated a significant difference in the variance of good governance among the cities. The overall average of the good governance index for natural resources in this research was determined to be 2.8884, which falls below the theoretical average and indicates relatively poor governance of natural resources in the research area. The one-sample t-test confirmed a significant difference between the good governance of natural resources and the average level of the objects under investigation. Additionally, the results revealed a significant difference between the indexes of good governance of natural resources in Maraveh Tappeh city compared to other surveyed cities. In other words, Maraveh Tappeh city displayed a distinct and weaker governance situation compared to the other cities. Examining the indicators of good governance in Maraveh Tappeh city revealed that, from the users' perspective, the indicators of transparency and law scored the lowest among the seven indicators, with scores of 1.458 and 1.647, respectively. This suggests that compliance with laws is not in a favorable state according to the users of natural resources in Maraveh Tappeh city.
Conclusion: According to the results obtained from this research, as well as the importance of governing natural resources, particularly through collaborative activities, involving users in the planning and formulation of natural resource plans and projects, and utilizing their knowledge, are crucial. Local users, in addition to being members of natural resource cooperatives, can play a significant role in achieving good governance of natural resources. Based on the results and findings, it is suggested that the areas under research focus more on improving the indicators of accountability, the rule of law and justice, and the transparency index, as these indicators are positioned lower compared to others. In order to achieve this, conducting public meetings to present reports from natural resource managers can be an effective approach.