TEHRAN - Today, home businesses are considered one of the most important and profitable activities in the country.

We are seeing more development in home businesses to provide self-employment and create jobs and income for different groups, especially women heads of households.

In this line, the government has also taken effective measures to increase job opportunities for women running home businesses.

Launching a home business has many advantages, including eliminating the cost of renting or buying a place, creating a balance between women's family responsibilities and economic activities, and using the best of all capacities and sources of energy.

Currently, women make up more than 32 percent of companies active in the domestic market, so 250 knowledge-based companies have been set up by women, and 735 women are running such companies as managing directors.

In addition, four thousand women manage 20 percent of entrepreneurship centers in the country.

According to statistics, out of a total of 203,000 community-oriented job creation projects launched in underdeveloped and rural areas across the country, 42 percent, equivalent to more than 85,000 projects, have been allocated to women entrepreneurs.

The Statistical Center of Iran has said out of twenty-two million families in Iran, over three million are women-headed households and most of them are in less-developed areas. The government has prioritized such families for targeting socio-economic support.

Meanwhile, Zahra Ershadi, Iran's ambassador and deputy representative to the United Nations, has said that Iran has made significant progress in empowering women, despite U.S. illegal and inhumane sanctions.

Ensieh Khazali, the vice president for women and family affairs, said in the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, that about 12,000 female heads of households underwent empowerment training and entered the traditional and virtual market.

Also, more than 1.1 million women heads of households are covered by the Relief Committee and more than 300,000 are covered by the Welfare Organization, benefiting from special support such as facilities, insurance, and livelihood services.

The National Headquarters for Women and Family Affairs has approved six plans to support families and empower women and improve their status in society.

The formation of a loan guarantee fund for women heads of households was one of the plans of the National Headquarters for Women and Family Affairs.

Due to the fact that many female breadwinners could not use business loans due to the lack of a guarantor, the fund was established to help them.

The Vice Presidency for Women and Family Affairs has released a report on the achievements of women after the 1979 Islamic Revolution in 7 areas of “education”, “health”, “employment and entrepreneurship”, “media”, “sports”, “decision-making”, and “environment, climate, and crises”.

In the field of employment and entrepreneurship, 4,200 rural women's credit funds have been operating. Also, 2,390 women work as members of the board of directors of knowledge-based companies.

In May, Mohammad Nasir, the deputy head of the Welfare Organization, said a total budget of 13 trillion rials (nearly $32 million) has been earmarked to empower women heads of households.

Last year (March 2021-March 2022), 2,000 female-headed households achieved full empowerment and independence, IRIB quoted Nasir as saying.

Empowerment of female breadwinners includes providing the basis for a healthy and lasting marriage, sustainable employment, socio-cultural empowerment, family, and economic independence, the official highlighted.

The budget bill for the current Iranian calendar year (March 2022-March 2023), has increased the budget of the Welfare Organization by three folds, he said, adding that nearly 10 trillion rials (about $25 million) will be allocated to female heads of households.

MG