ABSTRACT
The term bandar in Farsi/Persian means port', and indeed the geographical location of Bandar Abbas right on the southern coast of Iran has been its defining character ever since a settlement was founded at some point around 600BC. Bandar Abbas is also the capital and largest city of Iran's Hormozgan province. On top of this, and because of its strategic location on the Persian Gulf, Bandar Abbas has been a major naval base ever since Iran moved its headquarters here in 1977 from Khorramshahr at the northern end of the Gulf. Economic growth in Bandar Abbas is heavily reliant on its busy port activities especially from the flourishing flow of trade between Iran and the United Arab Emirates as well as good transport links on land to the rest of Iran. Problems caused by rampant smuggling, slum dwellings, poor sanitation and water pollution are posing real threats to people's livelihoods and their health and well-being.
