The realization of the electronic city, in addition to creating a new model at the urban level, facilitates access for citizens and managers to the aspirations of a developed, creative, clean, cultural, and knowledge‑based urban society. The present study was conducted with the aim of examining the role of electronic municipality in improving urban governance in the city of Malayer. This research is applied–developmental in nature and follows a descriptive–analytical approach.



The statistical population includes citizens, municipal experts and managers, members of the city council, and information technology specialists in Malayer. Based on Cochran’s formula, the sample size was determined to be 384 participants. Data were collected through a standardized questionnaire and semi‑structured interviews and were analyzed using SPSS and SmartPLS software as well as Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The reliability of the instrument was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient.



The findings indicate that the implementation of electronic municipality has a positive and significant effect on the dimensions of urban governance. Its greatest impact was observed on managerial efficiency (path coefficient = 0.71), followed by transparency (0.65) and citizen satisfaction (0.58). Moreover, electronic municipality shows considerable potential to enhance citizen participation in urban decision‑making processes (path coefficient = 0.63).



However, the analysis of barriers revealed that the most significant challenges are human and institutional in nature. In particular, insufficient staff skills, a shortage of IT specialists, and the lack of integration among information systems were identified as the primary obstacles. The results suggest that achieving desirable urban governance cannot rely solely on technical infrastructure. Existing gaps in financial transparency and genuine citizen participation require a shift in focus from infrastructure development toward strengthening human capital, integrating software systems, and reinforcing oversight mechanisms.