Nearly 11 Million Rural Residents Are Part of Iran's Inactive Population

The Mehr News Agency has reported that out of the 17 million and 600 thousand people living in rural areas of Iran who are of working age, currently "10 million and 700 thousand are considered inactive," meaning that "most residents of the country's villages play no role in earning income, economic activity, and consequently in improving their lives and the economic growth of the country." According to this report, published on Saturday, June 9, based on "studies by the Statistical Center of Iran," currently "more than 40 million out of 63 million economically active individuals are experiencing a kind of confusion and housebound state, such that this million-strong population plays no role in the development and economy of the country and is considered completely consumer-oriented." Mehr attributed the occurrence of this issue to "various reasons," including "the lack of job opportunities and the inability of the workforce to enter the job market." The report identified the rural population of Iran as "21 million and 900 thousand," adding that "of this number, 17 million and 600 thousand are of working age," and that "17 million and 600 thousand of them are capable of engaging in economic activities." In conclusion, Mehr pointed out that "today unemployment has cast a shadow not only over cities but has also affected the youth and job seekers in the country's villages," naming this issue as one of the "most important reasons for the migration of the population from villages to cities" in Iran. Two days before the publication of this report, Morteza Mirbagheri, the Deputy for Social Affairs at the Ministry of Interior, reported "over 40% unemployment" in "11 counties in Iran." Additionally, according to the latest report from the Statistical Center of Iran regarding the unemployment rate in the country, which examined statistics from the fall of 2014, the unemployment rate for the population aged 10 and older in Iran was 10.5 percent.