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| East Azerbaijan Province |
“East Azerbaijan is a rich province, but its wealth and capital are being transferred to other regions.”
This was stated by Mohammad Farshkaran, the new head of the Management and Planning Organization of East Azerbaijan Province, in an interview with the semi-official "Fars" news agency.
In the interview, Farshkaran discussed issues such as industry, agriculture, investment, and employment in East Azerbaijan.
He expressed regret over the Sungun copper mine, which has recently been a topic of controversy, saying, “Unfortunately, we see that the raw materials from the Sungun copper mine are being loaded and sent to other provinces, especially Kerman, without being processed. As a result, the main added value of Azerbaijan's wealth goes to other provinces. This doesn’t make sense.”
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| Mohammad Farshkaran |
Farshkaran also noted that investors prefer to invest in provinces like Tehran, rather than Azerbaijan.
“Capital owners have already transferred their wealth to Tehran to obtain added value and are investing in sectors like housing. We must think of a solution to reverse this capital flight,” said the head of the Management and Planning Organization of East Azerbaijan.
The revenue from gold, copper, and other precious stone mines in Iranian Azerbaijan is currently one of the most discussed topics. Political activists, as well as some MPs and local politicians, emphasize that the local population does not benefit from the revenue of these mines.
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Şərqi Azərbaycan – “sərvəti başqa bölgələrə gedən zəngin bir vilayət”