TEHRAN – The newly elected Head of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (TCCIMA) Mahmoud Najafi-Arab has outlined the chamber’s plan for the next four years, the TCCIMA portal reported.

Improving the status of the private sector, following up on the demands of the private sector, implementing a model of transparent and responsive management, increasing members, pursuing economic diplomacy, and solving the main challenges of the private sector, including shrinking the government and reducing interference are the main programs that the chamber will be following over the next four years, according to Najafi-Arab.

“We must be the voice of the private sector; the voice of the industrialists, merchants, farmers, mining operators, and entrepreneurs who have tried with great difficulty to keep the country’s economy up and running despite the sanctions”, he said.

According to the official, one of the main priorities of the TCCIMA during his tenure will be to reduce government interference in private sector affairs.

“Unfortunately, we see that instead of reducing interference in the economy, as I said before, the government has become the main competitor of the private sector, and this competition is not even fair. The government carries out mandatory and regulatory pricing, benefits from various tariff exemptions, etc., and expects the private sector to thrive in such conditions; In this situation, how can the private sector be able to compete?”, the official regretted.

EF/MA