Government's Response to Migration Statistics Reporting: Budget Cuts and Eviction Order

The director of the Iran Migration Observatory announced the intention of nearly seventy percent of skilled workers to emigrate from the country, alongside the eviction order for the building of this research institution. Bahram Salavati, on Tuesday, August 1, at a meeting at the Information Newspaper Institute, reported on the confrontations with the institution under his management, stating that in addition to the budget cuts for the 'Iran Migration Observatory,' an eviction order for the center's building has also been issued. He did not mention the individuals or entities involved in the budget cuts and the eviction order. Ali Sharifi Zarqi, a professor at Sharif University, tweeted in this regard: 'Finally, the solution to the high migration statistics has been discovered: 'Preventing the publication of statistics, cutting budgets, and issuing eviction orders for the Iran Migration Observatory. Congratulations to the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, the Policy Research Institute of Sharif University, and other relevant officials.' In another part of his remarks, the director of the 'Iran Migration Observatory' accused Iranian government officials of 'incompetence' in utilizing Iran's scientific resources. Bahram Salavati referred to the emigration of young elites as 'genocide of human capital' and added that 67 percent of skilled workers in knowledge-based companies have entered the migration process. This research official also criticized recent actions against some startup companies, emphasizing that one cannot engage with elites and scientific resources using 'the model of the past 30 years.' Several internet businesses, including 'Digikala' and 'Taqche,' have recently been shut down or temporarily taken offline due to the publication of images of their employees without mandatory hijab. Bahram Salavati also stated that eighty percent of Iranians living abroad, despite their desire to return to the country, have doubts about doing so. The director of the 'Iran Migration Observatory' did not provide explanations on how this data was monitored and obtained. Ali Hosseini, the deputy of the Center for Interactions of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, who was present at the meeting on Tuesday, confirmed the increasing tendency of elites to leave the country. The 'Iran Migration Observatory' in its last migration yearbook cited reasons for the increase in Iranian migration, including governance style, corruption, discrimination, inflation, and economic instability. The 'Tejarat News' website recently reported on the permanent exit of specialists and educated individuals from Iran and the entry of unskilled migrants. According to this report, the level of knowledge and productivity of human capital in the Iranian economy has been declining. The suicide of '13 residents' in one year; a union official: Our hope for the future has diminished! Despite warnings, the migration of doctors continues, and media criticism of the lack of change in 'official decisions.' The 'Taqche' study platform has been filtered; experts warn about the despair and flight of youth. The newspaper 'Payam-e-Ma' reported that teachers in border areas are migrating. The migration of athletes continues; Sara Khadem al-Shariah, an Iranian chess master, has become a Spanish citizen.