Seyyed Mohsen Tabatabaei-Mozdabadi, a faculty member at Islamic Azad University and Secretary General of the Iranian Urban Economics Scientific Association, wrote in a note: “Economic intelligence in urban management today has become one of the most important factors in increasing the income of cities and at the same time increasing the popularity and popularity of mayors. The main reason for this importance is that economic intelligence, using data, economic analysis, and digital tools, helps mayors make decisions that both reduce the city’s financial burden, generate sustainable income, and deliver urban services to the people more accurately and quickly.

When a municipality can reduce costs, make income and expenditure transparent, collect urban taxes and revenues optimally, and at the same time provide services that people can directly see the effect of, a strong bond is formed between the people and urban management, which leads to popularity and public trust.

In various cities around the world, there are successful examples that show that popular and high-income mayors have been able to deliver a better performance precisely by relying on this economic intelligence. For example, Barcelona, ​​which was able to both lower costs and activate the urban economy with data-centricity, small but precise transportation projects, smart energy management, and analytics-based urban policymaking.

Or Singapore, which used data to improve transportation, reduce operating costs, and attract capital with its Smart Nation program, and is now one of the most successful cities in the world in the data-driven management model. Reports from the World Bank, OECD, and UN-Habitat also confirm that cities that have the capacity to use data and technology perform better in sustainable income and public welfare indicators.

Today, the global situation shows that cities that have institutionalized economic intelligence within their municipal structures are more successful, but there are also challenges. The most important risk in data-driven urban management is the lack of transparency in how data is used, which can reduce public trust. Also, if smart services only reach a part of society, inequality will be created and the popularity of the mayor will be damaged. Another risk is heavy investments made without proper analysis and may not generate income or produce the desired results. Therefore, the success of economic intelligence depends on accuracy, transparency and public participation.

Popular mayors with higher incomes and stronger management usually start with projects where people can see the results quickly: such as transportation, urban cleaning, rapid response to breakdowns, street lighting and management of the city's financial inputs and outputs. They provide transparent dashboards to the public so that it is clear where the money is spent. They observe data governance and privacy protection so that citizens feel safe and respected. Large projects are first tested on a small scale and then expanded to avoid additional costs. They also provide financial resources through public-private partnership models to reduce pressure on municipal budgets.

The future of cities that intend to use economic intelligence is bright, provided that they are transparent, observe equity in access to services, and design projects that are measurable and result-oriented. If this path is followed correctly, cities can reduce their operating costs, obtain non-tax and sustainable revenues, attract investment, and improve the quality of life of people. As a result, the mayors of these cities will not only remain popular and popular, but also show better financial performance. The future of global urban management is moving strongly towards data, analytics, and economic intelligence, and cities that enter this path early will be ahead of others in global competition.

Arya’s Legacy