ABSTRACT
There is a drastic shortage of houses, schools, hospitals, transportation and urban facilities, along with critically high levels of pollution. According to official estimates 25 tonnes of lead pollute the air quality of Tehran, the capital city, as a result of unecological, low-quality fuel. The recent official statistics indicate about 12 million people are under the poverty line, almost one-fifth of the total population. As a result of such social inequality 80 per cent of the nation's wealth is in the hands of only 20 per cent of the population. The average age of addiction has fallen to 20 years and the number of people with an addiction to drugs has increased at an alarming rate. Due to the social and economic conditions of urban life in the major cities in Iran the rate of divorce has increased rapidly too. The paradox between traditional forces and modern 'know-how' remains a stumbling block for the development of the country on one hand and the external forces of the globalization process on the other. Furthermore, the difficulty of reconciling free-market principles with the Islamic constitution would halt the participation of Iran in the global economy.
