TEHRAN, Dec. 12 (MNA) – An official at the Ministry of Industry said the incumbent government had approved of two billion dollars of foreign investment in 38 projects at industry, mining and commerce sectors.

Director-General of Foreign Investment Affairs at the Iranian Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade Afrooz Bahrami said, since the previous government took office, as many as 252 projects worth 11 billion dollars with foreign investment have been approved in the industrial, mining and trade sectors 106 of which have come on stream.

She expressed that $ 2 billion of these investments pertained to the incumbent government asserting “over the past 20 years, a total of $ 40 billion foreign investment, equal of $ 2 billion annually, has been absorbed in all fields of industry, mining and commerce.”

“The figure indicates the significance of foreign investment attracted by the incumbent and previous governments,” she underscored.

Bahrami, while emphasizing that technology transfer and access to international markets are included in all new foreign contracts, added “distribution of foreign investment has become balanced and directed towards various provinces of the country as, in the meantime, provinces of Fars, Bushehr and Kerman have attracted the largest amount of foreign investment, respectively.

“Germany and Italy, having overtaken China, now rank first and second in volume of investment in Iran,” she continued.

At the end of her remarks, the official underlined that the country’s industry, mining and trade sectors required 20 billion dollars of investment annually six billion dollars of which are projected to be supplied through foreign investors.

HA/4169623