The Outcome of Raisi's Economic Promises on the Brink of His Government's Third Year; Failure to Achieve Goals

Ebrahim Raisi made numerous promises in the economic sector before assuming the presidency, many of which he has repeatedly insisted upon over the past two years. The fulfillment or non-fulfillment of some of his promises, including the creation of one million jobs annually, has become a point of contention between the government's economic team and experts. But what were Raisi's significant promises, and what has become of them? One of Raisi's promises was to build four million housing units in four years, but as he enters the third year of his presidency, there are no specific statistics in this regard, and no assessable record has been presented. In April 2023, the head of the Islamic Republic government reiterated that he is "determined to implement the plan to build one million housing units per year to meet the country's needs." The average price of housing in Tehran has exceeded 70 million tomans, and the problems faced by renters are the only outcomes of the housing promises during Ebrahim Raisi's administration. The website "Asr Iran" responded to this issue on June 30, stating to Ebrahim Raisi that as a revolutionary and popular government, and with your claim of having a 7,000-page economic program and the ability to mobilize economists, why do you deflect blame and portray predecessors as responsible when you have not built any housing? Raisi also promised during the election to pay attention to the "livelihood and rights of doctors and nurses" and to address their problems. In this area, Raisi's promises have remained mere words, leading to a reaction from the medical and nursing community that has resulted in nothing but emigration. The newspaper "Donya-e-Eqtesad" reported on May 23, 2023, that the number of doctors and nurses who left Iran last year exceeded 10,000, and over the past four years, 16,000 general practitioners have emigrated from Iran. While two years ago, most young general practitioners were seeking to emigrate, a wave of specialists' emigration has now begun, raising alarms about a shortage of specialists. The thirteenth government was also supposed to create one million jobs annually, ultimately generating four million jobs. In February 2023, the Minister of Labor claimed that the Raisi government had created more than one million jobs annually. At the same time, the website "Eghtesad24" disputed the president's claims regarding job creation in 2022, questioning why the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had declined so significantly compared to previous years despite such high employment statistics. This economic media outlet emphasized that according to an official report from the government agency "Statistical Center of Iran," less than 536,000 jobs were added to the market from fall 2021 to fall 2022, which starkly contrasts with the president's claim of one million jobs created. Perhaps one of Raisi's biggest promises was the "revitalization of the virtual economy," as developments in this area have not led to prosperity but have become a major point of contention between the people and the government. On December 8, following widespread filtering of virtual networks in Iran to counter the nationwide protests of "Women, Life, Freedom," reports emerged from some media outlets about developments in this area. The newspaper "Shargh" reported at that time that data obtained from an intelligent online business system indicated that one million direct jobs and the livelihoods of nine million people from existing businesses on Instagram were affected by the decision. In February 2023, a report was published indicating that internet outages and filtering in Iran from October to the end of January had caused about 10 trillion tomans in losses to the Iranian economy. The head of the Innovation and Digital Transformation Economic Commission of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce confirmed this news, stating, "The losses from four months of internet outages and disruptions in Iran have reached at least 39 trillion tomans." Among Raisi's promises was the goal of achieving single-digit inflation, which is far from the realities of today’s Iran. The performance of the thirteenth government's economic team has not only failed to reduce inflation but has also led to another shock in food inflation, which is expected to reach three digits. In this regard, the Statistical Center of Iran recently reported a 2% decrease in inflation for July; an economist responded by stating that a 70% inflation rate could also be observed. According to the Statistical Center of Iran's report, food inflation in July was 67%. Among food items, red meat and poultry led with an inflation rate of 86%. In this report, oils were introduced as the record holder for annual inflation with a rate of 145%. Raisi also spoke of the "prioritization of the people's table," but bread, as the last and most important part of the people's table, has recently increased by up to 40% in various cities, leaving Raisi's claim as mere words. Ebrahim Raisi's government has now entered the third year of its four-year term, prompting many media outlets in Iran to review the two-year record of the current government. Additionally, see: Increasing criticism of Raisi's government; media: "A regression to the past" accompanied by a severe decline in public services. Raisi's government denies that bread prices have increased in several other provinces. Farzin: Inflation will reach 30%; Raghafer: Iran's economy is collapsing. Expressions of hopelessness regarding the revival of Lake Urmia; a member of parliament: There is no hope with "fantasy programs." Raisi's economic spokesperson: Inflation has dropped below 30%; economists: the government's policies are "inflationary." Reactions to Ebrahim Raisi's "insomnia"; sleep soundly, as the Stability Front is awake. Covering up the problem instead of solving it; the continuation of "statistical suppression" in Iran.