The use of GIS to manage urban development: The example of Kirkuk city

One of the main problems facingthose responsible for urban planning and management is the growing volume of data available related to urban development. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are thus becoming increasingly importantforvarious applications, such as the mapping, management and prevention of urban slum growth. Indeed, the adoption of GIS technology within the municipal information systems of developing countries is nowadays considered a major method with which to solvesuch data management problems.The present study focuses on how GIS technology could increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the urban development management process for the city of Kirkuk, Iraq. Fieldwork and GIS data, including those obtained via primary and secondary sources,were employed to conduct a temporal analysis of Kirkuk during the 64-year period from 1947 to2011,thereby enabling an in-depth review of both the city's urban development process and the key problems to be tackled. Based onthe results, GIS would be able to solve many of the city's urban development problems and could also be applied to other similar cases elsewhere in Iraq. Keywords; urban development, Geographical Information System(GIS),Kirkuk