Iran Industries Minister-Designate Outlines Goals, Plans

Mohammad Shariatmadari, vice president for executive affairs, is President Hassan Rouhani’s choice to be the next industries, mining and trade minister.

Shariatmadari, who holds a Master’s in commercial management, led the now-merged Ministry of Commerce from 1997 to 2005.

According to his vision statement, Shariatmadari, who is to replace Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh, has divided the objectives of his ministry into general and quantitative goals.

His general goals include improving productivity and industrial competitiveness, boosting high value added exports, increasing the role of private sector in the economy, creating sustainable jobs, increasing foreign investment, improving the efficiency of goods and services distribution and increasing the share of mining in economy.

The ministerial nominee said he is planning to win Iran’s accession to World Trade Organization.

More than 20 years have passed since WTO received Iran’s application for accession on July 19, 1996. It took the organization nine years to accept Iran as an observer member. In 2005, WTO eventually established a working party composed of a group of representatives tasked with assessing Iran’s accession bid. However, the chairman of the party has not yet been elected. At present, Iran remains the world’s largest economy outside the world body.

As for Shariatmadari’s quantitative goals, he aims to increase the share of industries, mining and trade sector in GDP from 38.8% in the fiscal 2016-17 to 42% in 2021-22.

Industries’ share in GDP is targeted to reach 21% from 19.5%; mining sector share of GDP to 1.5% from 0.93%, and trade sector’s share in GDP to 19.5% from 18.4%. The rate of industries, mining and trade added value is expected to rise from 7% to 9% by the year Shariatmadari is to leave office.

The export of non-oil goods will increase from $56 billion to $130 billion in four years. Industrial and mining exports will jump to $84.5 billion from $31 billion. Gross capital formation will rise from 440 trillion rials to 1,160 trillion rials, based on the fixed prices of the 2004-5.

The minister-designate announced plans to attract $7 billion in foreign direct investment compared to $0.7 billion attracted last year.

“As many as 4 million people will be employed in the industries and mining sector from the current 3.4 million,” he said.

Shariatmadari wants to improve the Iranial industrial sector’s competitiveness to 50 from 66 in 2014.

Electronic trading share in GDP, which now stands at 4.8%, is planned to rise to 5.3% and Iran’s global rank in e-trading is to rise by nine steps to stand at 60.