analyzing the performance of rural municipalities in empowering and facilitating the participation of rural women (case study: kermanshah’s rural municipalities in the west of iran)

Purpose: rural municipalities’ performance in empowering and facilitating women’s participation is a critical aspect of rural management. this study aims to analyze this performance, focusing on a case study of rural municipalities in kermanshah.methods: the research method is descriptive-analytical, using data collection through surveys. the statistical population comprises women residing in villages within rural municipalities. according to the research limitations and employing cochran’s formula, a sample size of 365 individuals was determined. experts confirmed the validity of the questionnaire, while its reliability was established by administering 30 questionnaires and calculating cronbach’s alpha coefficient, which exceeded 0.70.results: the binomial test result indicated that rural municipalities’ performance in the social and personal empowerment of rural women was statistically significant at a significance level of less than 0.05, with a p-value of 0.000. the average social and individual empowerment scores were 3.379 and 3.343, respectively. rural municipalities have achieved average performance in empowering women across social and personal indicators. however, their economic performance, with an average score of 2.879, has been deemed weak. additionally, the test results evaluating rural municipalities’ performance in facilitating rural women’s participation across economic (2.802), socio-cultural (2.526), and physical-environmental (2.580) aspects revealed significance at a level below 0.05, indicating a weak status. the results of the factor analysis showed that 21 factors, organized into five major categories—expansion of cooperative activities, training and capacity building, strengthening personal empowerment, women’s participation in village affairs, and insurance and financial support—significantly influence the performance of rural municipalities in empowering and facilitating the participation of rural women. according to the results of the structural equations, these factors account for a 57% impact on the performance of rural municipalities regarding the empowerment and participation of rural women.conclusion: the research reveals that rural municipalities have not adequately prioritized the participation and empowerment of rural women in their plans and programs. consequently, there is a pressing need to harness this demographic’s economic, social, and cultural potential.