TEHRAN (Iran News) – President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday inaugurated numerous projects valued at 62 trillion rials (about $1.47 billion) in the free trade and special economic zones of five different provinces across the country in an online event.
Put into operation following the series of inaugurations started in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), the said projects were based in the free trade and special economic zones of East Azarbaijan, Khuzestan, Alborz, Hormozgan, and Sistan-Baluchestan provinces.
Some 38 large industrial, construction, infrastructure, and agricultural projects with a total investment of 19.278 trillion rials were among the projects that were put into operation in Aras Free Zone in East Azarbaijan.
Four major development projects worth four trillion rials (about $95.2 million) were also inaugurated in Alborz to create job opportunities for over 125 people.
As for Khuzestan province, eight industrial projects with 14.427 trillion rials (about $343 million) of investment by domestic firms plus €1.6 million of foreign investment were among the inaugurated projects in Arvand Free Zone.
Four major industrial and development projects were also put into operation in Sistan-Baluchestan’s Chabahar free trade zone to create direct jobs for 675 people.
Several projects were also inaugurated in Qeshm free trade zone.
Over the past few years and especially since the re-imposition of the U.S. sanctions, the Iranian government has been taking serious measures for promoting domestic production and pushing the country’s economy towards self-sufficiency while cutting reliance on oil.
In this regard, last year, which was named the year of Surge in Production by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Seyed Ali Khamenei, the government started a program in which every week several projects would be inaugurated across the country to show that the country’s economy is still dynamic and moving forward.
The program has been continued in the current year which is named the year of “Production: Support and Elimination of Obstacles” despite the pandemic and the restrictions created by the U.S. sanctions.
Since the beginning of the current years, every week several industrial, development, infrastructure, production, and agricultural projects have gone operational in various provinces.
