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MP Says 300 Per Cent Reduction in Value of Iranian Currency Since 1995

Posted on: Wednesday, 7 September 2005, 12:00 CDT

Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA website

Tehran, 7 September: An Iranian lawmaker has blamed wrong policies and lack of coordination among various government bodies as the reasons for a 300 per cent devaluation of national currency, rial, in the last decade.

A lawmaker and member of Majlis Economic Affairs Commission Naser Ashuri told the economic news desk of the English-language newspaper Iran News that a consumer good worth 1,000 rials in 1995 now costs 300 times more than before.

Ashuri further told the Wednesday edition of Iran News, "On plans to change the national currency from rial to tuman, the fact is no bill for legislation on this matter has been introduced and at this stage it is nothing more than an idea. Some people are suggesting we even go a step further and drop two zeros instead of one from the currency."

He went on to mention: "The people have a right to demand from the new government and its top economic team to maintain and strengthen the national currency. Unfortunately, the high inflation rate in our economy has contributed to the further devaluation of the rial."

Ashuri further stated, "In my view, one way to reduce inflation and stop the devaluation of the rial would be to draft national budgets based on economic realities and not fiction and fantasy, the way it is done now. The new government should also utilize the expertise and specialized views of academics and economists in trying to tackle inflation as well as the other problems facing the Iranian economy."

The lawmaker continued by saying, "One of the problems with the previous administration was the lack of coordination and the fact that the top economic team was not reading from the same page or script. I hope the new government does not suffer from the same predicament."

In conclusion, the legislator said, "One should keep in mind that knocking off zeros from the currency will not necessarily solve the country's economic problems. Earlier this year, Turkey eliminated not one but six zeros from its national currency (lira), but their economic problems persist as before."

Source: BBC Monitoring Middle East

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