TEHRAN – Forty foreign investment companies from 21 countries will attend the 3rd Technology Investment Meeting (TIM 2021) of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation which will be held on February 16-17 in Tehran.

Pardis Technology Park will host the event both virtually and in-person, aiming to address the investment potentials in Islamic developing countries in order to open up an opportunity for foreign and domestic investors.

D-8 includes major Muslim developing countries namely, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey.

Due to the prevalence of coronavirus and the observance of social distancing, some side programs of this event are held virtually, Milad Sadrankhanloo, deputy secretary of the event, stated.

This edition focuses on the participation of international investors, and in the startup sector, 24 Iranian startups will be introduced at the event, he said, adding, the main indicator in the selection of startups was their activities in the international era and the capacity to participate in international markets.

Some 30 percent of these startups are active in the field of health, others in fintech (financial technology), ICT, oil and gas, and artificial intelligence, he further noted.

Good opportunities, such as abundant manpower alongside cheap knowledge-based and technological products, have attracted foreign investors, despite unilateral sanctions, to consider the Iranian knowledge-based ecosystem.

Technological achievements of Iran

Despite sanctions putting pressure on the country, a unique opportunity was provided for business development and the activity of knowledge-based companies in the country.

Currently, some 6,000 knowledge-based companies are active in the country, manufacturing diverse products to meet the needs of the domestic market while saving large amounts of foreign currency.

The fields of aircraft maintenance, steel, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment, oil, and gas are among the sectors that researchers in technology companies have engaged in, leading to import reduction.

In recent years, the vice presidency for science and technology has been supporting knowledge-based companies active in the production of sanctioned items.

Sattari also told the Tehran Times in October 2020 that “U.S. sanctions caused exports of knowledge-based companies to decline three years ago, however, it has returned to growth and is projected to reach the pre-sanctions level of more than $1 billion by the end of the current [Iranian calendar] year (March 20).

Fortunately, last year, companies achieved a record sale of 1.2 quadrillion rials (nearly $28.5 billion at the official rate of 42,000 rials), which is expected to increase by 40 percent this year.”

FB/MG