Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) is leading discussions on establishing a support fund for businesses damaged by wartime conditions, following a meeting with heads of chambers of commerce from across the country.
During a session of the heads of Iran’s provincial chambers with the ICCIMA board members, participants exchanged views on the design of a fund aimed at assisting economically struggling enterprises amid the current conflict. It was agreed that the mechanism for the fund’s formation, operations, and bylaws would be reviewed over the next 10 days.
Iran Chamber of Commerce President Samad Hassanzadeh announced a proposal to create a fund specifically to support war-damaged businesses, adding that the initiative had the backing of the Ministry of Economy, which has expressed readiness to cooperate. “We seek to take steps toward targeted support of economic enterprises in collaboration with the ministry,” he said.
Hassanzadeh noted that the fund’s establishment would be subject to approval by the ICCIMA’s board of representatives.
Board member Keivan Kashefi said the idea of pooling resources from ICCIMA and several provincial chambers – in coordination with a bank to provide credit facilities – had been discussed before but regained attention after the outbreak of war.
“We first need to examine the legal aspects, then define the framework and guidelines, and finally secure approval from the board of representatives,” Kashefi said.
Mahmoud Najafi Arab, head of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, said his chamber had already approved a proposal to leverage funds for rebuilding economic units. “Given the damage inflicted on businesses, what we are proposing is to leverage a sum of money for the reconstruction of enterprises. This model has been approved in the Tehran Chamber and can now be implemented nationwide,” he said.