Hossein Forouzan, secretary of the High Council, said effective action against smuggling requires cooperation among all responsible agencies, alongside measures to facilitate legitimate economic activity and remove obstacles facing businesses.
He made the remarks at a meeting of the council’s deputies and the managing directors of free trade and special economic zone organizations, attended by Habibollah Haghighi, the president’s special representative and head of Iran’s Central Headquarters for Combating Smuggling of Goods and Foreign Currency.
Forouzan welcomed Haghighi and his delegation, describing the meeting as an opportunity to exchange experience, examine operational challenges in the zones and develop joint solutions to facilitate business activity while strengthening efforts to combat smuggling.
The meeting also brought together the heads of the zone-management organizations and private-sector representatives, allowing economic operators to raise their concerns directly and discuss ways to improve implementation procedures with officials responsible for combating smuggling.
Protecting domestic production and investment
Forouzan stressed that the secretariat and the anti-smuggling headquarters share a common objective: safeguarding the national economy, supporting domestic production and creating conditions conducive to economic growth.
Smuggling, he said, directly harms manufacturers and businesses and can weaken production units while limiting the development potential of free trade and special economic zones.
He added that the authorities responsible for managing these zones view the fight against smuggling as an integral part of protecting investment, strengthening domestic production and supporting the wider economy.
Forouzan emphasized the need for closer institutional cooperation to prevent the emergence of harmful informal trade channels without imposing unnecessary obstacles on legitimate commercial activities.
Clarifying import procedures for essential goods and production inputs
The high council’s secretary also highlighted the need to resolve outstanding issues concerning the import procedures for certain goods and the commercial processes associated with them.
He called for the use of the legal capacities of free trade zones to establish clear arrangements for importing essential goods and raw materials needed by manufacturers.
Such measures, he said, should protect the rights of cargo owners while preventing unnecessary additional costs and the outflow of economic benefits from the country.
Forouzan expressed hope that the meeting would lead to stronger cooperation between the high council’s secretariat and the central anti-smuggling headquarters, faster resolution of obstacles to business activity, and more effective support for production and investment in Iran’s free trade and special economic zones.