What is the role and significance of refactoring in software development?

Refactoring is the process of improving the internal structure of code without changing its external behavior. Its role in software development is to maintain the cleanliness, readability, and ease of maintenance of the code. Regular refactoring helps to:

• Reduce technical debt
• Facilitate the addition of new features
• Improve the quality and reliability of the code
• Simplify the search and fixing of bugs

For example, if a function is too long and complex, it can be split into several simpler functions, which will improve the understanding and testability of the code.