TEHRAN - President Hassan Rouhani on Monday inaugurated 33 projects valued at 16.6 trillion rials (about $397.3 million) in the free trade and special economic zones across the country in an online event.

Put into operation following the series of inaugurations started in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), the said projects were based in the free trade and special economic zones of East Azarbaijan and Hormozgan provinces.

The mentioned projects put into operation in Aras, Kish, and Qeshm free trade and special economic zones, have created job opportunities for over 1,049 people.

Some 20 large industrial and production projects with a total investment of 9.27 trillion rials (about $220 million) were among the projects that were put into operation in Aras Free Zone in East Azarbaijan. These projects will create jobs for 669 people in the said province.

Four major development projects worth 1.03 trillion rials (about $24.5 million) were also inaugurated in Kish Free Trade Zone to create job opportunities for over 78 people.

As for Qeshm Free trade and Special Economic Zone, nine economic and infrastructure projects with 6.37 trillion rials (about $151.6 million) of investment were put into operation to provide jobs for 302 people.

Over the past few years and especially since the re-imposition of the U.S. sanctions, the Iranian government has been taking serious measures for promoting domestic production and pushing the country’s economy towards self-sufficiency while cutting reliance on oil.

In this regard, last year, which was named the year of Surge in Production by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Seyed Ali Khamenei, the government started a program in which every week several projects would be inaugurated across the country to show that the country’s economy is still dynamic and moving forward.

The program has been continued in the current year which is named the year of “Production: Support and Elimination of Obstacles” despite the pandemic and the restrictions created by the U.S. sanctions.

Since the beginning of the current years, every week several industrial, development, infrastructure, production, and agricultural projects have gone operational in various provinces.

EF/MA