The Volume of Smuggled Goods in 2013 Was Twice the Total Development Budget of the Country

Habibollah Haghighi, head of the Anti-Smuggling Headquarters, stated on Sunday, January 21, that the volume of smuggling in 2013 amounted to $20 billion, which is twice the total development budget of the country. According to Fars News Agency, Haghighi, speaking at a specialized conference on combating smuggling, noted that the volume of smuggling in 2013 was equivalent to $20 billion, which, at an exchange rate of 3,000 tomans per dollar, equals 60 trillion tomans, while the total development budget of the country is around 30 trillion tomans. He added that $1.3 billion worth of smuggled goods was transported through 10 unofficial routes under the guise of portering in 2013, and currently, there are 37,000 porters in the country, which could potentially create jobs for 175,000 people if the mentioned amount were allocated to employment. Haghighi pointed out that the inefficiency of tools to combat illegal imports has led to a 16-fold increase in the volume of smuggling over the past three decades and a 24% increase in the value of confiscated smuggled goods in the first nine months of this year. The head of the Anti-Smuggling Headquarters reported that the volume of smuggled goods has increased from $1.3 billion at the beginning of the revolution to $20 billion last year, marking a growth of about 16 times. He stated, 'In the first nine months of this year, the value of confiscated smuggled goods was 1.2 trillion tomans, which represents a 24% increase compared to the same period last year.' He also attributed the low quality of domestic goods and their inability to compete with foreign products as other contributing factors to smuggling in Iran. Fathollah Zamaniyan, head of the Anti-Smuggling Police, mentioned that in the past nine months, 449 smuggling gangs have been dismantled, and 75,200 smugglers have been arrested, with 215 cases having a monetary value exceeding 5 billion rials. Masoud Karbasian, head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs, also stated that smuggling is considered organized crime due to its extensive nature and is included in the anti-money laundering law, similar to fuel smuggling. In recent years, several Iranian officials have criticized organized smuggling in the country and have mentioned ports and entry points for goods that are beyond government control. Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated in July 2011 that some institutions and organizations import goods through illegal ports and borders, and these activities must be stopped. Ahmadinejad emphasized that 'no one should be immune in this matter, and if defensive, security, and intelligence goods are to be imported, they can enter through legal borders.' He added, 'I do not want to say that the volume of smuggling is equivalent to the volume of legal transactions, but it cannot be said to be much less than that.' Regarding cigarette smuggling in Iran, Ahmadinejad noted that 'between 55 to 60 billion cigarette sticks are consumed in Iran, amounting to 2 trillion tomans. This figure tempts all top smugglers in the world, let alone our own 'smuggling brothers.' Just one day after Ahmadinejad's criticism of some institutions regarding 'illegal imports' from certain border points and unauthorized ports, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards emphasized that the institution under his command 'like other military institutions, has military ports at its disposal but no commercial transactions are conducted there.' In this context, Iran raised the price of gasoline at the border with Iraq by 41%, which does not pay taxes, and 'the institutions under the leadership are involved.' The Deputy Minister of Oil stated that six million liters of diesel are smuggled daily.