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Pezeshkian reaffirms support for private sector amid challenges
The first meeting of the board of trustees of the National Development Fund (NDF) under the current administration was held on Sunday, chaired by Pezeshkian, according to president.ir.
During the meeting, the fund’s performance report was reviewed, the budget for the next Iranian year was approved, and a proposal for the fund’s role in addressing energy shortages and national development was discussed.
It was decided that the proposal would be examined by a specialized working group to develop solutions in line with existing laws and regulations. These solutions will be presented for approval at the next board meeting.
According to the proposal, the NDF expressed readiness to collaborate with the private sector in financing projects to address energy deficits, based on a specific framework designed by the fund’s experts.
Due to limitations in the fund’s charter regarding direct financial intervention in the economy, the board decided that the proposal would be reviewed by the working group comprising members from the three branches of government.
The group will develop solutions that comply with existing laws and regulations. Given time constraints, the working group was urged to finalize these solutions within two weeks for review and approval at the next board meeting.
Pezeshkian referenced statistics indicating that the private sector incurred losses of at least 175 trillion tomans ($2.18 billion) due to energy deficits in the first nine months of the year (started March 20, 2024).
He emphasized that the current administration has been actively working to resolve energy shortages since its beginning but has encountered persistent challenges.
“As the head of the government, I am accountable to the people and the private sector for these issues. Given that solar power plants are the fastest, most effective, and cost-efficient solution available, we must not waste any more time. We need to quickly approve and implement actionable solutions in this area,” the president added.
Pezeshkian stressed that having resources but being unable to use them to address critical national issues due to a lack of actionable plans is illogical.
He pledged to expedite the development of practical solutions aligned with the country’s laws and interests.
The president also committed to preventing any misuse, waste, or corruption in the allocation of approved resources for this purpose.