Extended Abstract
Introduction
Establishing appropriate criteria to evaluate the performance of executive bodies is crucial for oversight by Iran's Islamic Parliament. The main objective of the article is to enhance efficiency and improving government performance. Although the Islamic Parliament has dedicated attention to evaluating ministries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has received comparatively less scrutiny. This lack of attention stems primarily from the complex and sensitive nature of this ministry's activities and actions, coupled with the presumed evasion of oversight in governments' international endeavors. Like other ministries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is publicly funded and must undergo continuous monitoring and evaluation by the Islamic Parliament. However, there is a dearth of coherent, well-formulated criteria for evaluating this ministry's performance. The central question this article addresses is: how can the Islamic Parliament effectively evaluate and monitor the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' performance?
Materials and Methods
In this research, a mixed-methods approach was employed for the extraction and analysis of performance monitoring indicators about the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Initially, qualitative content analysis was conducted on the supervisory reports from the Islamic Consultative Assembly, the report on specific performance evaluation indicators for executive agencies from the Administrative and Recruitment Affairs Organization, as well as high-level documents related to the activities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Through this qualitative analysis, and drawing upon the researcher's prior theoretical knowledge, the functional domains of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and their corresponding preliminary indicators were identified. Subsequently, an analytical method was utilized to examine these indicators and assess their measurability and quantifiability. In instances where indicators were not measurable, or where they were measurable but lacked the requisite quantifiability, novel ideas for evaluating and monitoring the performance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been proposed.
Results and Discussion
Bilateral Diplomacy: In the realm of bilateral diplomacy, certain indicators, such as actions taken to counter the domination system and support the resistance movement, are not readily quantifiable. Such activities are primarily conducted based on the strategic influence of Iran's security and military forces, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs primarily playing a facilitating role and providing diplomatic support. The impact of such actions cannot be evaluated in short time intervals; moreover, publicly accessible information and data for researchers in this field are limited, aside from some official meetings between Iranian diplomatic officials and resistance movement leaders. Some indicators, such as bilateral diplomacy for resolving disputes between third countries and Iran's disputes with other countries, are amenable to qualitative assessment of the country's overall actions, as such measures are usually carried out within a cross-sectoral framework, involving various decision-making and executive institutions such as the Supreme National Security Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Therefore, it is not possible to precisely differentiate the performance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from that of other agencies.
Multilateral Diplomacy: In the domain of multilateral diplomacy, some indicators, such as safeguarding national interests, do not inherently possess quantitative evaluability. First, the realization of Iran's national interests in international organizations must be indexed, and then evaluated. For instance, if we accept that reducing the number of anti-Iranian human rights resolutions in the United Nations, or decreasing the number of countries voting in favor while increasing those voting against or abstaining from these resolutions, aligns with the interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran, then the number of correspondences or bilateral meetings with countries likely to change their vote in Iran's favor could serve as an indicator for assessing the positive performance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in protecting the interests of the Islamic Republic in international organizations. Other indicators in this axis can be quantitatively evaluated based on metrics such as Iran's annual membership in international and regional organizations, meetings with counterpart officials from neighboring countries, and legal cases raised in international forums.
Economic Diplomacy: In the sphere of economic diplomacy, in addition to quantifiable indicators such as trade exchanges, trade agreements, and identified economic opportunities in other countries, other indicators can be added. These may include the number of Iranian commercial attachés in other countries, the number of Ministry of Foreign Affairs employees recruited with qualifications related to economic diplomacy, the number of joint meetings with private sector actors at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the number of training courses and participating employees in the field of economic and commercial diplomacy, and the number of reports received by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from commercial attachés.
Public Diplomacy: In the realm of public diplomacy, international indices such as the soft power index can be utilized. Some indicators, like city diplomacy, can be measured based on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' performance in facilitating communication between city officials and agreements between various Iranian cities and foreign cities, including sister city agreements. However, some indicators, such as cyberspace diplomacy, are not readily quantifiable; the virtual space has a complex and decentralized nature, and one cannot make accurate judgments about the diplomatic success or failure based on the number of messages sent by diplomatic officials on virtual networks or the number of likes these messages receive. On the other hand, metrics such as the growth in the number of Persian language learners abroad are shared between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education, and the performance of both ministries is jointly evaluated, making it difficult to precisely differentiate their respective contributions. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' performance in improving the global ranking of the Persian language can be evaluated based on the indicator of actions taken by cultural councils and Iranian embassies towards establishing Persian language chairs and learning centers in various countries.
Conclusion
This research represents an initial step towards augmenting the Islamic Consultative Assembly's role in foreign policy. As a manifestation of the general will alongside the executive branch, the Assembly should collaborate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to achieve national interests and enhance Iran's international standing. Establishing a relationship of trust between the parliament and the Ministry, facilitated by verifiable performance indicators, can lead to domestic force synergy and increased international bargaining power. The Seventh Development Plan's emphasis on an economy-oriented foreign policy approach provides a favorable context for parliamentary evaluation, as the Ministry's activities in these domains are more measurable. Furthermore, the economic involvement of various parliamentary commissions allows for broader participation in the oversight process, extending beyond the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission.