About the International Scientific Cooperation Office (ISCO) 

Our holy city of Mashhad is in a stage of rapid expansion and growth, so a great demand has been placed on our city to offer better urban services and to become actively competitive in the global arena. In turn, great demand has been placed on our city managers and policy makers to meet the needs of its citizens using the latest knowledge, technology and innovations. 
As a result, the office of ISCO was established in 2004 under the Urban Planning and Development Department of the Municipality of Mashhad.
 

ISCO on the Municipality Chart

Since its establishment, Mr. Hamid Isfahanizadeh has managed the office of ISCO under supervision of Department of Planning and Human Capital lead by the Deputy of the Mayor, Mr. Shahryar Ale Sheikh.
ISCO currently has five full time staff working to fulfill its commitment to our city and its worthy citizens.

Our Mission Statement

 At ISCO we remain committed to fulfilling our responsibilities. These responsibilities include:
Introducing in the best way possible the potentials and capabilities of our municipality to the international arena.

Establishing professional ties with other cities, metropolises and international organizations.

 Assisting in empowering managers and policy makers on all fronts for the sake of our worthy citizens, tourists, and pilgrims in line with our 20-year vision plan.

Overall, doing our part in making our part of the world a better place for all.
 

ISCO aims to achieve these goals by:
Connecting and establishing productive professional relationships with international organizations, such as the Metropolis, UCLG, and UN-Habitat.

Professionally introducing Mashhad’s capabilities and potentials internationally.

Planning and organizing expert foreign trips, with the intent of making these trips as fruitful as possible, so that not only the delegates benefit but also our city.

Conducting research to introduce managers and policy makers to the latest scientific knowledge, information, and solutions in urban subjects.
 

Summary of Activities
Received appointment to be the official Regional Training Center of the Metropolis and has to date held 8 successful international training workshops in Mashhad.

Received appointment to be the Regional Office of the Women Network of the Metropolis.
 

Held an online class in cooperation with the International Institute for the Management of Major Metropolises for municipality engineers on Road Infrastructure in 2007.

Based on these activities the head of ISCO was invited to speak on line in the Metropolis Board of Directors meeting held in Paris in 2006 and was invited to participate several times in the Metropolis Strategic Planning Meetings.

Disseminating information, in Persian and English, domestically and internationally on our programs.

Conducting and/or commissioning research on a variety of urban subjects, such as on low-income housing, systems of revenue, annual budgets, and method of tax collection in large cities of the world, assessing women's needs in Iran and so on.

Preparing introductory reports concerning proposed expert trips for the Foreign Trips Commission of the Mashhad City Council.

Doing the necessary planning and coordination for active and professional participation for delegations in Metropolis conferences and preparing, writing, and/or translating speeches and presentations to be delivered at these international programs.

Receiving reports of feedback by delegates that took these types of trips.