TEHRAN- Iranian Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Ehsan Khandouzi said that Iran joining BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is hoped to bring noticeable achievements for the country in terms of attracting foreign investment.

The minister made the remarks answering the Tehran Times on the sidelines of the 24th edition of Iran Media Expo in Tehran on Wednesday.

“In terms of attracting foreign investments, which is affected by Iran’s joining the SCO and BRICS agreements, the legal preparations for joining these two agreements are underway, so, we are very hopeful that in 1403 [the next Iranian calendar year, which begins on March 20] we will witness much higher practical achievements than the current situation”, the official noted.

Iran officially became a member of the BRICS economic organization in January, as it seeks to overcome the impact of the U.S. sanctions.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, announced the news as an important achievement for Tehran.

The BRICS group, comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, established in 2009, has emerged as a significant force shaping global economic discussions. 

Iran, alongside Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, has received an invitation to join this influential bloc.

Iran has also become a member of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The Islamic Republic became the SCO’s ninth member on July 4, 2023 when Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi participated in a virtual SCO summit hosted by India. It was an upgrade from the observer status that Iran had held with the group since 2005. Along with India, the other SCO members are China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan.

joining SCO and BRICS is a fruitful step for Iran that has sought to reduce its reliance on the dollar in response to the sanctions.

 ‘Government determined to continue inflation control policies’

The finance minister also replied to the Tehran Times’ question, about the government’s plans for the control of inflation rate in the country and boosting the people’s purchasing power, as follows.

“The government is determined to continue the inflation control policies that it had started before, both in terms of banking, monetary and liquidity indiscipline, and also in the discipline of finance and the government budget”, Khandouzi stressed.

“All the estimates made by reliable international institutions in relation to Iran’s inflation forecast in 2024, as well as the estimates of the country's domestic institutions, indicate that inflation will continue to decrease, the official underlined and said, “We hope that in reality we will see the same good news for the people and the producers of the country.”