Two decades that reveal a rocky relationship with enterprise
Saturday, 16 May 2009
Fardin Alizad returned to Iran from overseas in 1991 for personal reasons: "When I came back, the [Iran-Iraq] war was just finished, the streets were unpleasant and I had few friends and acquaintances," he says. But, he adds: "I quickly realised there was a lot of room for progress in an unexplored market and starting up was inexpensive." After the devastating eight-year war ended in 1988, even the most conservative authorities realised they would have to release the state's grip on businesses if they were to reconstruct the economy.
While Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the conservative pragmatist, was president of Iran between 1989 and 1997, he encouraged investment in the private sector. Still an influential figure, he warned recently that many Iranian industries are "on the verge of collapse" because of current government policies.
Mr Alizad recalls how welcoming Mr Rafsanjani's government was when he applied for a mandatory permit to set up his second business, confectionary maker Shiva. For instance, a government minister met him in person to sign the permit: "It showed the government was so eager to lure the private sector." But now, the central bank's latest figures show a 40 per cent decline year-on-year in the number of permits awarded to private sector companies.
While Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the conservative pragmatist, was president of Iran between 1989 and 1997, he encouraged investment in the private sector. Still an influential figure, he warned recently that many Iranian industries are "on the verge of collapse" because of current government policies.
Mr Alizad recalls how welcoming Mr Rafsanjani's government was when he applied for a mandatory permit to set up his second business, confectionary maker Shiva. For instance, a government minister met him in person to sign the permit: "It showed the government was so eager to lure the private sector." But now, the central bank's latest figures show a 40 per cent decline year-on-year in the number of permits awarded to private sector companies.