28 Mar 2024
Tuesday 3 March 2020 - 16:11
Story Code : 371574

Coronavirus puts more pressure on Irans already strained economy

Al-Monitor | : The current crisis surrounding the spread of coronavirus in Iran is a complex and multilayered issue with political, social, health, environmental and economic consequences ranging from questions of how to sustain the economy to the notion of public trust in the governments handling of the process. Yet with Iran already facing massive economic problems due to sanctions, mismanagement and corruption, the question of economic impact of is of particular importance, as this public health calamity threatens to lead to further deterioration of the economy.

While there are conflicting statistics about the number of deaths and infections, it is clear that the virus has disrupted the countrys economy. According to official figures, there have been 1,500 verified cases and 66 deaths, but some reports place the numbers much higher. Authorities have closed schools, universities, government offices and also restricted many social events as well as transportation across the country to prevent the spread of the disease. Despite protests from the clergy, government authorities even took the rare step of canceling Friday prayers in Tehran and 20 other cities last week.

In the meantime, the Iranian government has deployed its normal toolkit and has established a national committee to manage the outbreak. The committee is managed by Health Minister Saeed Namaki and includes a number of ministers and officials, among them the chief of police, Hossein Ashtari. The composition of the committee indicates that the country expects a wide-ranging set of tasks that will require coordination between authorities. As such, efficient governance will be needed a point of weakness in the country. It is clear that President Hassan Rouhani is also aware of the significance of managing this crisis in restoring some of the lost credibility for his administration. In fact, one of the major impediments in managing the spread of the virus is the low level of trust in the authorities. Hence, many citizens do not cooperate with the relevant institutions. Furthermore

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