Unemployment of 18,000 People and Recession of 900 Production Units in West Azerbaijan

Jafar Sadegh Eskandari, the head of the Industry, Mine and Trade Organization of West Azerbaijan Province, has reported the unemployment of 18,000 people due to the recession of 900 production units in the province. Eskandari stated this on Wednesday, December 4, in an interview with the state news agency 'IRNA', identifying 'sanctions' and 'economic problems' as the main factors behind the recession of production units and the unemployment of this number of workers. He added that 'the government has tried to bring these industrial units back into the production cycle by employing economic policies and necessary measures.' According to him, in the first phase of the government's plan, '400 production units with 8,500 workers will be selected' and will be taken out of recession through 'banking policies', 'tax exemptions', and 'extension of received facilities.' Eskandari further mentioned that this year, 75 production units have exited recession and re-entered the production cycle using the same method. Hassan Rouhani and his government had previously cited international sanctions as the main cause of inflation, recession, rising prices, unemployment, and many other economic problems in Iran before signing the 'Vienna' nuclear agreement. In addition to officials from the eleventh government, some other political and economic experts in Iran also believe that international sanctions have had many 'negative' impacts on the country's economy in recent years. In contrast, another group known as conservatives or principlists in Iran believes that only 20 to 30 percent of the country's economic problems stem from 'sanctions' and that the root cause of these problems should be sought in 'inefficient management.' This group of conservatives has repeatedly asked Hassan Rouhani's government to provide clear explanations about the results of this agreement after the signing of the 'Vienna' nuclear agreement between Iran and the 1+5 group. They argue that despite the signing of this agreement, international sanctions remain in place, and the economic problems of the Iranian people continue. Government officials have also directly and indirectly stated in response to these criticisms and questions that they are waiting for the complete lifting of sanctions to take more effective steps to resolve the issues. Unemployment has been one of the most significant economic problems in Iran over the past 37 years, which has seen a considerable increase in recent years due to the intensification of international sanctions. The latest report from the Statistical Center of Iran shows that in 2014, only 110,000 people with doctoral degrees were unemployed in Iran, and forecasts indicate an increase in this figure in the coming years. On July 21, 2013, Mohammad Reza Najafi-Manesh, a member of the Auto Parts Manufacturers Association, stated that from 2012 to July 2013, at least 122,000 workers employed in auto parts manufacturing units lost their jobs. On October 14, 2014, Elias Naderan, a member of the Budget and Planning Commission of the Parliament, announced that one million people have become unemployed so far, stating that the government's statistics claiming the creation of 400,000 jobs is nothing more than a 'joke.'