Former central bank governor Tahmasb Mazaheri has urged the administration to immediately take action and unify foreign exchange rates, whether or not sanctions are lifted.
His remark came after Masoud Nili, an economic advisor to President Hassan Rouhani, said that the unification of rates may be delayed if sanctions last through the year.
“Merging official and unofficial foreign exchange rates is one of the main prerequisites to ensure sustainable growth and avoid rent and financial corruption,” he said, noting that in a multiple exchange regime, it is not possible to fundamentally eliminate corruption, according to Nasim news agency.
“If a government intends to improve economic conditions, it should put implementation of unified exchange regime on the top of its agenda,” he added.
On Sunday the US dollar was traded at 28,255 rials in the official market while it was traded at 33,370 rials in the free market.
The former official criticized the administration for attributing the unification decision to the lifting of sanctions, arguing that “they should be considered as two independent issues, and the government is required to unify the rates regardless of the sanctions’ future.”
Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (P5+1) are negotiating to reach a long-term deal by the June 30 deadline, hoping to end a 12-year dispute over Tehran’s nuclear energy program. The deal is believed to end years of economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for Tehran limiting parts of its nuclear activity.
Iran has called for immediate lifting of nuclear-related sanctions imposed in recent years by the United Nations, United States and European Union. Western negotiations however seek solutions that would lift sanctions gradually.
Mazaheri also called for effective cooperation among the government, ministry of economic affairs and finance and Management and Planning Organization (MPO) in a logical timeframe, a collaboration that would eventually lead to a unified foreign exchange system.
