As a first stage in the planning process, this article attempts to establish development rankings for the cities and counties of the Golestan Province. Taxonomy analysis determines the level of development by integrating various criteria or indices. This study focuses on 16 cities and 9 counties of the province by analyzing a number of indexes such as housing and construction, infrastructure, cultural facilities, labor force, educational facilities, and employment. It ranks the cities and counties, identifies critical locations, and uses an inter-sectoral method to offer development recommendations.
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