The number of knowledge-based companies and tech firms in West Azarbaijan Province has seen a sevenfold jump since 2013, a provincial tech official said.
Ali Mohammad Nikbakht, the head of the province’s Science and Technology Park, said 120 knowledge-based firms are currently active in West Azarbaijan, IRNA reported.
“In the last Iranian year (ended March 19, 2010), West Azarbaijan’s technology teams and startups earned 500 billion rials ($1.9 million) in the domestic market, which is a considerable achievement,” he added.
The startup ecosystem in the region, mostly active in Miandoab County and the province’s tech park, employs more than 500 professional and talented youngsters.
Nikbakht said meeting the local demand is the main objective of West Azarbaijan’s tech ecosystem, adding that the provincial innovative teams are mainly working in the fields of electronics, construction, automation, chemical and polymer, ecotourism, natural resource management, environment, new energies and biotechnology.
One of the outstanding products of the tech ecosystem is artemia cysts (also known as brine shrimp eggs), a key feed product in aquaculture.
According to Nikbakht, the product used to be imported but since 2016, a total of 20 tons of artemia cysts have been produced by the tech teams of the province and distributed in the domestic market, curbing a capital flight of $20,000.
IT and ICT infrastructures also show a growth trajectory, as the tech park has established a joint tech center with the Urmia University by gathering professionals in the field.
Pointing to the fact that the center includes 10 large sections for housing knowledge-based companies and startups, Nikbakht said a public call has been issued for tech teams to join the center and start a synergistic move.
Startup ecosystem in West Azarbaijan has also excelled in the health sector amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the country, which started in mid-February.
The provincial official said teams in the tech park have done their best to meet the local healthcare demand both in the medical centers and the society.
“Hand and surface sanitizers of different kinds, thermal imaging cameras, air purifiers and hybrid power multirotor drones for the disinfection of open and public areas are among the wide gamut of products developed by the knowledge-based companies of the province,” he added.
Multidimensional Move
Officials believe that the government’s nationwide support to the growing startup ecosystem has already paid off and tech units have flourished in different fields all around the country.
Tech infrastructure projects have been launched regularly in Iranian provinces, expanding the national startup ecosystem and increasing its share in GDP and export revenues.
The government has also played a vital role in developing technical, legal and financial support centers and tech factories to provide startups with shared workspace and consultancy.
Although Tehran leads other provinces in terms of tech infrastructures and facilities, work is on track to make a collective move nationwide.
Numerous tech parks, innovation factories and innovation towers have so far been launched in Yazd, Isfahan, Alborz, Khorasan Razavi, Khuzestan and Hamedan.
However, officials believe that materializing a harmonized initiative for developing a strong technology ecosystem still needs a great deal of efforts.
Financial Assistance
Tech officials say financial support to the technology sector is in line with the government’s policy to help realize a digital economy and curb the country’s dependency on oil revenues.
Reports say the government has injected 36.6 trillion rials ($139.16 million) in the form of low-interest loans during the first quarter of the current fiscal year (March 20-June 20).
The loans have been offered to 484 tech units and knowledge-based companies, averaging 76 billion rials ($288,900) for each applicant, the Central Bank of Iran reported last month.
The figures illustrate the government going the extra mile to support the tech ecosystem throughout the country, as the amount of financial assistance offered to knowledge-based companies and startups has seen a 95.5% rise compared to the year-ago period.
Tech officials are also mulling over the extension of non-financial facilities for the fledgling tech ecosystem, such as affordable workplaces and a variety of consultancy.
