Journal of Sustainable Urban & Regional Development Studies (JSURDS)

Abstract Background and Objective: Religious tourism has emerged as a significant driver of regional competitiveness and sustainable urban development in countries endowed with rich religious heritage. Iraq, as one of the most prominent pilgrimage destinations in the Islamic world, possesses substantial religious and cultural assets. However, despite these advantages, the country continues to face critical challenges, including inadequate infrastructure, spatial inequalities, administrative corruption, and managerial inefficiencies, which hinder the transformation of religious tourism potentials into a sustainable competitive advantage. Therefore, this study aims to identify the key driving forces and formulate effective strategies for enhancing Iraq’s regional competitiveness with a particular emphasis on religious tourism through a futures-oriented approach.
Methodology: This study is applied in terms of purpose and adopts a descriptive–analytical approach grounded in futures studies. The study population consisted of university academics, futures studies and tourism experts, executive managers, specialists from the Iraqi Ministry of Tourism, and stakeholders involved in religious tourism. Using purposive and snowball sampling techniques, a panel of 20 experts with at least ten years of professional experience and a master's degree or higher was selected. Data were collected through a cross-impact matrix questionnaire and analyzed using MICMAC structural analysis software..
Results and Findings: The study concludes that the future competitiveness of Iraq’s religious tourism destinations depends on reinforcing institutional capacity, improving governance quality, fostering innovation, and promoting stakeholder collaboration. Accordingly, several strategic initiatives are proposed, including the establishment of a pilgrimage spatial planning office, the creation of a supply-chain financing fund for local businesses, and the development of specialized university–industry intermediary institutions to facilitate knowledge transfer and innovation in the tourism sector.

Abstract Background and Objective: Urbanization is a global trend that significantly impacts sustainable urban development and the quality of urban life. Assessing urban sprawl is critical for sustainable urban planning and aligns with the key objectives of the United Nations sustainable development goals. The present descriptive-analytical study aims to identify and measure the intensity of urban sprawl in the city of Al-Diwaniyah, Iraq.
Methodology: Using geographic technology and landscape indicators, the study assesses, maps, and quantifies the extent of urban sprawl in Al-Diwaniyah from 1990 to 2024. Therefore, to achieve the desired goal, a supervised machine learning algorithm using a support vector machine (SVM) along with landscape criteria was used. In this regard, first, satellite images for the years 1990, 2000, 2011, 2020, and 2024 were extracted using the Landsat satellite and classified and changes were revealed using the SVM algorithm in ENVI4.8 software. Also, by applying landscape metrics using Fragstats 4.2 software, urban sprawl in the city of Al-Diwaniyah was examined and extracted.
Findings and Conclusion: The results showed that the amount of construction in Al-Diwaniyah city increased from 2069 hectares in 1990 to 4420 hectares in 2024 during the 34-year study period. In other words, the city witnessed a growth of 113.6%. The study also discovered through landscape criteria that all forms of urban sprawl, leapfrog, infill, strip/ribbon, and low density development characterize the urban sprawl pattern in Diwaniyah.