AFP, Tehran :
The investment gold rush that was supposed to follow Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers and revitalise the economy has not materialised, leaving many voters disillusioned ahead of Friday’s election.
The figures say it all-President Hassan Rouhani wanted $50 billion a year in foreign investment to reach his target of eight-percent growth.
But since the nuclear deal came into force in January 2016, lifting some sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran’s atomic programme, only $1-2 billion worth of deals have actually been finalised, his deputy Eshaq Jahangiri admitted to AFP this week.
Unofficial polls still show Rouhani in the lead for Friday’s election, but faced with a 12.5-percent unemployment rate it is no wonder that many have lost faith in his administration.
The problem is even worse for young people, with more than a quarter of 18-to 25-year-olds out of work, and many of the rest taking jobs far below their education level.
The investment gold rush that was supposed to follow Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers and revitalise the economy has not materialised, leaving many voters disillusioned ahead of Friday’s election.
The figures say it all-President Hassan Rouhani wanted $50 billion a year in foreign investment to reach his target of eight-percent growth.
But since the nuclear deal came into force in January 2016, lifting some sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran’s atomic programme, only $1-2 billion worth of deals have actually been finalised, his deputy Eshaq Jahangiri admitted to AFP this week.
Unofficial polls still show Rouhani in the lead for Friday’s election, but faced with a 12.5-percent unemployment rate it is no wonder that many have lost faith in his administration.
The problem is even worse for young people, with more than a quarter of 18-to 25-year-olds out of work, and many of the rest taking jobs far below their education level.
