Fruitless Promises of Job Creation; 42% of Unemployed Are Higher Education Graduates

Despite numerous promises from senior officials of the Islamic Republic regarding the creation of 'millions' of jobs, official statistics reveal the extent of unemployment among Iranian youth, with '42.8%' of the total unemployed population being 'higher education graduates,' a significant portion of whom are 'educated rural women.' According to the latest statistical report from the government agency 'Statistical Center of Iran,' the unemployed population of the country is reported to be '2 million and 43 thousand,' meaning at least '875 thousand' of the unemployed are 'university graduates.' An analysis of the statistics on 'labor market and unemployment of graduates' shows that '11.4%' of the active population of higher education graduates are 'unemployed.' The report from the Statistical Center of Iran in October of this year also indicates that '70%' of the unemployed population falls within the young age group of '18 to 35 years,' with '1 million and 643 thousand' unemployed individuals aged 18 to 35 in the Iranian labor market last summer. Ebrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic, has consistently promised to create 'one million jobs per year' since mid-June 2021 during his presidential campaign, a slogan echoed by his Minister of Labor, Solat Mortazavi, which has faced significant backlash. On August 20, Mortazavi claimed in an Iranian television program that 'over 1 million and 970 thousand job opportunities' had been created in the past two years, which sparked widespread reactions. At the same time, the news agency 'ILNA' reported that the figures provided by the minister were 'inaccurate,' stating that the job creation statistics are not felt in practice, and the newspaper 'Ham-Mihan' emphasized that the Ministry of Labor's administrative statistics are 'baseless, superficial, and fabricated.' Experts have repeatedly stressed that the government in the Islamic Republic manipulates indicators or shifts time bases to effectively fabricate statistics. Furthermore, in the latest official report, the unemployment rate of '15 years and older' higher education graduates has increased 'among women compared to men' and in 'rural areas compared to urban areas.' The result of the Islamic Republic's 'anti-women' policies, reducing women's share in the labor market and increasing restrictions on the presence of women managers at high levels of Iran's economy, has led to challenges within society, one of which is the desire to emigrate. The newspaper 'Donya-e-Eqtesad' reported on December 9 that 'this data shows that in 2021, over 52% of permanent residencies issued for Iranians in Canada, 45% in Finland, and 49% in Australia were for women.' Why do no young people or unemployed individuals participate in retirees' gatherings? The consequences of poverty in border cities; the prevalence of youth suicides in Ilam province. Aftershocks of the economic crisis on family foundations; 570 cases of dowry claims registered on the day the livelihood crisis reached a dangerous level; escaping poverty through suicide. The Ministry of Labor defends the increase in the retirement age for labor activists: various governments were the cause of the crisis. Economists' accounts of four decades of Islamic Republic governance; 'We have made 30% of society poor.'