The government has developed 12-point national blueprint to implement the principles of the Resistance Economy aimed at curbing the economy’s dependence on oil export revenues, improve productivity and reduce the government role in the economy, Minister of Economy Ali Tayyebnia told the new parliament Monday.
Tayyebnia used his first visit to the Majlis to highlight the achievements of President Hassan Rouhani administration and the government's vision to uphold the Resistance Economy–a set of policies proposed by the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei to boost the economy based on domestic production and capabilities.
“The government’s plans aim to achieve a set of notions for the economy, namely: instilling a self-developing and outward-oriented approach, promoting a justice-based economy and fostering efficiency," he was quoted as saying by Majlis News Agency.
"Fostering a knowledge-based economy" and "instilling transparency and discipline" in financial markets are among other plans the government is pursuing, according to Tayyebnia.
He added that each plan includes a group of sub-plans, which are set to help assure "a proper understanding of the Resistance Economy" and guarantee its implementation.
A specially created office for the Resistance Economy in the government is closely following the process of its implementation,” he said.
Improving Tax Collection
Even though the government managed to reduce the share of oil revenues in the annual budget from 42% in 2014-15 to 30% in 2015-16, Tayyebnia said the issue is "still an obstacle for economic development.”
“The government is planning to finalize the Integrated Taxation System by the end of the current fiscal year in March 2017, in an attempt to detach the economy from oil revenues,” the minster told the lawmakers.
The objective is to ease tax collection and improve transparency and fairness of its process,” he said adding that the new system would also prevent tax evasion.”
"The government is also trying to develop downstream sector of the petroleum industry to benefit from domestic potential in oil and gas sectors.”
Political Stability
The minister said "political stability" is a prerequisite for sustainable economic growth and called for improving the cooperation and coordination among the three branches of the government.
“Entrepreneurs and investors are watching us, to see how united we are when deciding economic policies,” he said. “The (future of the) economy is promising, [but] it requires all organizations to work in unison.”
He referred to stabilizing the foreign exchange market and curbing the runaway inflation as the government’s major achievements during past two years.
“Measures taken by the government minimized volatility in the foreign exchange market, "he recalled. “Stable markets now make it possible for us to better forecast the situation and plan for the future.”
