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Oct 24 2009

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Non-Oil Export Target: $50 Billion

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said non-oil exports have increased threefold and will hit the $50-billion mark over the next four years.

Speaking in a ceremony to mark the 13th anniversary of National Exports Day in Tehran on Tuesday, President Ahmadinejad said non-oil exports stood at $7.3 billion in 2005 before reaching $23 billion this year--despite the global financial turmoil.

The president announced that $2 billion have been earmarked to support exporters to set up trade centers overseas in collaboration with the Central Bank of Iran, IRNA reported.

Sanctions Futile
Ahmadinejad stated that exporters helped the government to break the barrier of illegal sanctions imposed on the country over its civilian nuclear program.

"Over the past four years alone, western propaganda have tried to undermine the Islamic Republic by putting pressure on its economy. However, the economic sector managed to bypass these obstacles by increasing non-oil exports," he said.

The West tried to sanction Iranian banks in order to cripple the economy, but exporters entered the scene and neutralized the sanctions. In fact, the success of exporters insured the economy and demonstrated the capabilities of Iranians in all spheres.

Going Private
The president said the government is more than willing to give a greater role to private enterprises, adding that the process of privatizing the state-owned sector has been gaining momentum steadily over the past four years and this is a record for the country.

"However, the success of nationwide scheme will largely depend on effective collaboration with exporters who must try to quickly take matters into their own hands," he said.

According to Ahmadinejad, many countries are now weary of a world that has been monopolized by the West. They seek greater economic and political ties with all nations, especially Iran.

Pointing out that Iranian firms have built 10,000 housing units for the people of Venezuela, he said, "Some doubted the ability of Iranian contractors when signing the construction deal at the time. But they worked hard and efficiently, and the housing units were inaugurated in the presence of the Iranian and Venezuelan officials on time."

Therefore, it will not be difficult for the Iranian exporters to hit the $50-billion mark over the next few years. However, the government should help them by lifting bureaucratic barriers in the way of trade and exports.

In this regard, the president has also urged the Ministry of Commerce and banks to support producers and exporters, and adjust their policies to facilitate exports. He lauded the parliament for ratifying articles of the economic overhaul plan to reduce state subsidies and said the subsidies would be targeted to benefit the low-income strata.

The president's comments on Tuesday have been backed by official statistics that indicate Iran exported nearly $1.3 billion worth of non-oil products to the member-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2008.

This was a 167-percent growth compared with the preceding year's figure of $465 million.

Petrochemicals, carpets, pistachios, citrus fruits, herbs and foods were among the main exported items.
Non-oil exports to Russia also increased more than fivefold over March 1999-2009, according to the director of Trade Promotion Organization of Iran.

Mehdi Ghazanfari said non-oil exports to Russia stood at $62 million in 1999, but surged to $350 million in 2009.

"Vehicles, fruits, glassware, plastics, chemicals, carpets and decorative stones were among the main items exported to Russia," he said, adding that Iran imported iron, steel, wood, electrical equipment, paper, fertilizer and vehicle from Russia during the same period.

At the end of the event, President Ahmadinejad presented awards to 50 top exporters.