Economy Minister Seyyed Ali Madanizadeh said the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance was ready to work with other government agencies and private-sector operators to develop joint projects to expand tourism, health tourism and handicraft exports.
Speaking at a meeting in Mashhad, Madanizadeh said tourism and handicrafts had significant potential to generate foreign-exchange revenues through the export of goods and services.
He said health tourism was one of the areas highlighted in the economic program he presented to parliament, arguing that Iran’s healthcare capabilities could provide a basis for exporting medical services by attracting patients and visitors from abroad.
“Despite the existing capabilities, the country has yet to make significant use of its potential in health tourism,” Madanizadeh said, adding that Iran could attract patients and medical tourists from neighboring countries and other international markets.
He singled out Razavi Khorasan province, Mashhad, as an area with substantial potential for developing the sector.
Madanizadeh called for closer coordination among government institutions to develop joint initiatives and accelerate investment in health tourism beyond the targets set under the country’s development program.
He also said the expansion of medical tourism could have benefits extending beyond foreign-exchange earnings, arguing that greater use of Iranian medical facilities by citizens of other countries could contribute to stronger international economic relations.
Turning to handicrafts, Madanizadeh said the sector had considerable potential for employment generation, and that investment in the industry could yield significant economic benefits. He argued that Iran’s handicraft export capacity was substantially greater than its current performance and called for removing production and export barriers to support the sector’s expansion.
The minister also highlighted the capital market (stock exchange) as a potential source of financing for tourism-related projects, particularly hotels and other tourism infrastructure. He said the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance was prepared to support private-sector investment and facilitate the use of capital-market financing for such projects.
The meeting in Mashhad was attended by Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Reza Salehi-Amiri, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, the governor of Razavi Khorasan province, senior government officials and private-sector representatives from the tourism, cultural heritage and handicrafts industries.