Is inequality rising in Rouhani’s Iran?
With the nuclear deal in hand, President Hassan Rouhani’s greatest challenge in the run-up to the 2017 presidential elections appears to be ensuring not only that the dividends of his foreign policy focus are reaped, but that they are evenly distributed.
Last month, the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI) released a report showing that economic inequality had increased during the Iranian calendar year 1393 (March 21, 2014 - March 20, 2015). The rise in inequality comes after four years of continuous decline.
The news is unwelcome for President Hassan Rouhani, whose program of economic reform is under fire from his political opponents for failing to improve life for ordinary Iranians.
The Rouhani administration has been credited for turning Iran’s battered economy around, registering a modest 3% growth in 2014. However, the economy appears to have been at a standstill last year. Indeed, another report just released by SCI shows that unemployment in 2015 was up by half a percentage point, to 11%.
There is little doubt that with continued reintegration into the global economy, Iran will experience more robust growth. All expectations are for a growth rate of 5% in 2016. However, given the rise in inequality in 2014, when the economy experienced a 3% growth, important questions should be raised about whether future economic growth under Rouhani will be (in)equitable.
