Some 600 small- and medium-sized industrial enterprises have been revived in Iran’s industrial parks since the beginning of the current fiscal year (March 21), a deputy industries minister said.
“About 44,000 industrial and production units are operating in Iran’s industrial parks, having created close to 900,000 direct jobs,” IRIB News also quoted Mohsen Salehinia as saying.
He noted that 10,000 (22.72) of the total number of units in the industrial parks are facing recession.
“Ninety-three percent of industrial and production units are considered small, 4% medium and 3% large enterprises. They have generated jobs for a total of 880,000 people,” he was earlier quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
By definition, enterprises run by 100 workers or less, and 50 workers or less are considered medium- and small-sized businesses respectively, according to Iran’s Small Industries and Industrial Parks Organization.
Salehinia noted that Iran has 813 active industrial parks and zones, adding that 34,000 industrial firms are under construction or being equipped.
Latest data show Iranian small- and medium-sized enterprises exported €1.3 billion worth of non-oil commodities during the first five months of the current Iranian year (March 21-Aug. 22).
According to Asghar Masaheb, the deputy head of Iran Small Industries and Industrial Parks Organization, the volume of exports show a 40% rise compared with last year’s corresponding period.
The exports during the five months under review were made by 1,100 SMEs in different industrial fields, he added.
Iran is home to over 77,000 SMEs, 44,000 of which have been authorized to operate in industrial parks, IRNA reported.
Small- and medium-sized enterprises account for just over 10% of Iran's total exports.
Small- and medium-sized enterprises constitute 92% of Iran’s 85,000 manufacturing enterprises.
SMEs' share in Japan’s exports is at 60%, Taiwan’s at 70% and Singapore’s at 90%.
It was reported last year that a total of 35 small- and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises were under development in Iran through foreign investment, adding that 28 of those projects were located in industrial towns with a total of $2.8 billion being invested in them by foreign parties.
Iranian SMEs saw a 28% year-on-year increase in the value of investment guarantees issued for them in the fiscal 2017-18, according to SME's Investment Guarantee Fund.
The value of guarantees issued reached 1.64 trillion rials ($14.38 million) for 353 SMEs, compared to 1.28 trillion rials ($11.22 million) issued in the year before.
The number of total guarantees, however, dropped 18% YOY to 189.
Khorasan Razavi Province topped the charts in terms of both number and value of guarantees issued with 22 worth 208 billion rials ($1.82 million), indicating a 13% and 271% growth YOY, ISNA reported.
The fund’s budget stands at 1,100 billion rials ($9.64 million).
Esfandiar Omidbakhsh of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture announced last year that plans are underway to create an Iranian consortium to join the Enterprise Europe Network with the aim of connecting Iranian SMEs with their counterparts in Europe and promoting these enterprises on an international scale.
Launched by the European Commission in 2008, the Enterprise Europe Network helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for SMEs with international ambitions.
As the network’s official website Een.ec.europa.eu says, the network is active in more than 60 countries. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organizations, all renowned for their excellence in business support.
The Research Department of Tehran University, Trade Promotion Organization of Iran and the Science and Technology Department of the Presidential Office have been nominated as members of the consortium.
As Omidbakhsh explained during the meeting with the representative of the aforementioned organizations, the aim of this consortium, which will be formed in collaboration with both the public and private sectors, is to promote SMEs’ international activities and expand their capacities.
“The Enterprise Europe Network focuses on three main areas, namely trade, technology transfer and research collaboration,” he said, explaining that the first step to join the network is to form a consortium that should have three to four members.
The ICCIMA official emphasized that members should be selected as per the network’s priority areas.
“To finalize Iran’s membership in the network, two memorandums of understanding should be signed: one between Enterprise Europe Network and the consortium and one among the consortium’s members,” he added.
Omidbakhsh noted that organizations in non-EU countries can apply on a self-financing basis and Enterprise Europe Network does not provide financing to non-EU members, but they can enjoy the various services offered, including accessing the database, receiving help on implementing research projects and getting to know non-EU SMEs.
