In recent days, the government of Ebrahim Raisi and the Iranian regime’s tightly controlled state media have made much fanfare about implementing the so-called “Seventh Development Plan.” What is this plan and how does it resolve Iran’s financial calamity? What happened to the six previous ones?
“The head of Planning and Budget Organization presented the seventh development plan during a ceremony dedicated to this matter, announcing that parliament has finished examining it,” the state-run Fars News Agency, linked to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), wrote on May 21.
In a meeting with his loyal MPs, the regime’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei praised the parliament’s so-called “great works, such as ratifying the seventh development plan.”
The so-called “development plans” started right after the Iran-Iraq war in 1988. There has been a development plan nearly every four years, aiming to address the country’s economic hardships. Cloaked in the benign intention of “developing” Iran’s economy, this plan is unrealistic and is indeed a façade for the IRGC’s illicit financial activities and plundering of the nation’s wealth.
“Many of the country’s problems do not need consecutive plans, and they need actions by the ruling system. The government fails to pay its employees’ salaries. So, it literally does not give a cent to spend on development plans,” the state-run Sharq newspaper wrote on January 7.
Iran’s economic crisis worsens every day, despite its rich resources. Authorities’ self-boasting rhetoric prevents them from admitting that they are overwhelmed by economic pressures and face an explosive society.#IranRevoIution https://t.co/hvqGmZ1RNY
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) April 10, 2023
This plan calls for more privatization of major industries—or whatever is left of them. As we have previously explained, there is no private sector in Iran, and “private companies” are the IRGC’s front companies tasked with the money laundering of the world’s largest terrorist group.
“The government’s role as a private contractor is wrong. In recent years, nothing has been handed over to the private sector. Instead, the semi-governmental institutions [IRGC] have taken matters into their hands. In contrast, governmental institutions were easier to audit. But the semi-governmental institutions answer to no one,” the state-run Setar-e Sobh newspaper wrote on January 31.
Besides, this so-called “economic plan” is riddled with unrealistic figures and statistics that starkly contrast the country’s current financial calamity.
“All these numbers are a dream or mirage. Why? Because the absence of essential mechanisms and conditions hinders the attainment of these objectives. Instead of a lengthy and futile 302-article bill spanning 184 pages, a concise document pinpointing the core issues should have been presented and elucidated. This program is nothing more than an illusion—a concoction of appealing elements and statements that cannot be actualized under the current government, its policies, and its capacities,” the state-run Ham-Mihan newspaper wrote on May 22.
“Drafting such programs mirrors numerous other instances in the country where proposals are made but remain unimplemented. This parallels the scenario of economic slogans that are recurrently mentioned at the start of each year but fail to materialize. The crucial question arises: Is the Iranian economy truly a priority? The answer is negative. With the economy lacking priority status, the written programs are relegated to insignificance, consequently impeding any prospects of prosperity,” the state-run Etemad daily further acknowledged the regime’s economic smoke and mirror on May 22.
The regime had the opportunity to address Iran’s economic problems during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency when it earned around $900 billion worth of oil revenues. Yet, the lion’s share of this money was squandered on terrorism and advancing weapons of mass destruction or importing goods, therefore increasing the unemployment rate, liquidity, inflation, and decreasing national production.
Watch and judge why the #Iranian regime’s MPs have become alarmists about an #EconomicCrisis pic.twitter.com/xVoIWuhgGy
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) February 25, 2023
Iran suffered from the same crises during Shah’s era in 1973. The 1973 Arab-Israeli War caused oil prices to soar, leading to an unprecedented rise in Iran’s oil revenue. However, the mismanagement of this wealth by Pahlavi’s regime, focusing on military spending and import, resulted in increased unemployment, decreased national production, and heightened inflation.
Tyrannical regimes, be it Iran’s ruling theocracy or its predecessors, display a disregard for the plight of the Iranian people. Despite inflation surpassing 50% and a meager production rate below 3%, the clerical regime prioritizes unrealistic plans and further exploitation of the people’s wealth. It is no surprise that Iranians chant during nationwide uprisings that “poverty, corruption, high prices, we continue until regime change.”