The Deputy Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade (Somat) of the Islamic Republic of Iran and also the CEO of the Organization of Small Industries and Industrial Estates of this country in a press conference with foreign media reporters living in Tehran, expressed the latest capacities, potentials and achievements of small industries and industrial estates in Iran, especially for foreign investors.

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) - Tehran: Ali Rasolian said at the beginning of this meeting on Tuesday, March 15, 2023, with the presence of foreign journalists from different media, that there are 851 towns and industrial areas in this country, more than Out of 50,000 small and medium production units are active in these towns and industrial areas.
 
He also added: The units located in the towns and industrial areas of this country have directly created jobs for more than one million people. Also, there are 47,000 projects under construction in Iran's towns and industrial areas, which will provide more employment opportunities with their completion.
 
CEO of Small Industries and Industrial Towns Organization of Iran continued: 1060 of these production units are export-oriented and export their products to different countries.
 
He stated: As an example, saffron and related products are exported to countries such as Iraq, Turkey and Azerbaijan. Chemical products are exported to Iraq, Azerbaijan and Georgia, textile products are exported to countries such as Germany, Qatar and Kuwait.
 
Iran's Deputy Minister of Security also noted: Household appliances products are exported to countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and stone and ceramic products are exported to Turkey, Italy, Iraq, and the UAE.
 
In another part of his speech, he mentioned: 272 foreign investors are active in Iran's towns and industrial areas, and about 11,000 people are working in their industrial and production units.
 
Rasolian stated: We also have 82 export consortia in different fields. Export consortia create a good market for improving the production indicators of small and medium enterprises.
 
He added: Out of more than 50,000 production units in the towns and industrial areas of Iran, about 98% are small and medium-sized, which should be helped to improve their competitiveness, and it is one of the best ways to reach foreign markets.
 
CEO of Small Industries and Industrial Towns Organization of Iran also added: 505 industrial clusters have been identified in this country, the work of 122 clusters has been completed and implemented, and 54 clusters are being implemented.
 
He continued: "Empowering the employees of industrial and production units is a priority on the agenda, and various works have been done in this field."
 
Rasolian stated: The Organization of Small Industries and Industrial Towns of Iran offers the necessary incentives to small and medium-sized enterprises to attend domestic exhibitions, send trade delegations, and attend foreign exhibitions as support packages. The way to increase production is actually to improve foreign demand.
 
He said: supporting research projects is also followed as a priority, and 661 research projects have been carried out.
 
The Deputy Minister of Industry, Mining and Trade of Iran stated: 1,650 industrial units with the potential to be knowledge-based have been identified in Iran, of which 759 units have been knowledge-based so far. Also, 229 other units have been identified and 97 knowledge-based companies have been established, and land has been assigned to more than a hundred knowledge-based companies.
 
He added: supporting innovative and technological ideas is also on the agenda, and 235 events have been held in this area. We have 40 technology service centers for development and troubleshooting, 650 consultants are working in these centers, and there are 6 active technology towns.
 
The CEO of Iran's Small Industries and Industrial Towns Organization continued his speech and added: This year, in total, more than 9 thousand billion Tomans have been invested in the infrastructure of towns and industrial areas, and so far a major part of these investments have been in areas such as Supply of water, electricity, gas, increase of new lands and development of existing towns and industrial areas have been successfully completed.
 
He mentioned: We support the establishment of solar energy settlements and the sustainable supply of electricity using renewable energies. In this regard, 92 industrial towns with a capacity of 5,300 hectares have been introduced to SATBA (Renewable Energy and Electricity Efficiency Organization), which are connected to substations and substations, and from the capable private sector and foreign investors.
Rasolian said: There are about 20,000 hectares of industrial land ready to be handed over in this country, in which the necessary infrastructures for the presence of investors and industrial activity have been provided.
 
Meanwhile, the Organization of Small Industries and Industrial Towns of Iran and its subsidiary provincial companies, now with 851 towns and industrial zones and 6 special economic zones in operation, 86 towns and specialized industrial zones, 7 technology towns, 40 technology service centers and business, 2 information technology complexes and software services, 100 thousand 564 contracts concluded and operation of 50 thousand 373 industrial units and 4 thousand 260 workshop units completed, providing direct employment for 1 million 12 thousand 493 people throughout Iran, and this capacity is one of the suitable platforms for small and medium-sized foreign investments.