Minister of Economy Ali Tayebnia has criticized the approaches taken by two key international financial institutions towards some Islamic member countries including Iran as "politically motivated."
The minister accompanied by a delegation has traveled to Washington to attend the annual joint meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Addressing the 2014 annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group in Washington on Friday, Tayebnia described anti-Iran sanctions as unfair acts by western states which "have in fact targeted ordinary Iranians."
Despite sanctions, the minister said, the Rouhani administration has managed to curb inflation in the past year. “The government has implemented its economic plans while sanctions have been in effect.”
The government has been able to bring stability to the domestic monetary and financial market, he added.
Tayebnia also met with his Algerian, Tunisian, Moroccan, Afghan, Ghanaian and Pakistani counterparts during a dinner ceremony on Friday night.
In a separate meeting on Thursday evening, the minister met with Iranian expatriates at the two international organizations introducing them to the administration’s economic plans.
IMF Official Forecasts Greater Achievements
On the sidelines of the meeting on Friday, Naoyuki Shinohara, the IMF’s deputy managing director applauded the recent economic achievement in Iran, saying that Tehran can win even greater achievements provided it maintains the current growth trend and implement its economic plans.
Shinohara also met with Valiollah Seif, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran, on Friday night. During the meeting the Iranian official outlined the country’s achievements in the past year, like how the government changed policies to curb inflation, stabilize foreign exchange rates, improve GDP growth, promote stability in money markets, and implement the second phase of the subsidy reform plan.
Shinohara said Iran has done a great job, adding that “coordination among policy makers plays a significant role in successful implementation of economic policies.”
Seif and Tayebnia were among top Iranian officials attending the annual meeting.
Each year, the gathering brings together central bankers, ministers of finance and development, private sector executives, and academics to discuss issues of global concern, including the world economic outlook, poverty eradication, economic development, and aid effectiveness.
Ealier Masoud Ahmad, the director of IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia, also praised the central bank’s performance in the past year. During a visit to Tehran, Ahmad congratulated Seif on the bank’s achievements assessing them as positive.
