The 5 th Development Plan Outline Ali Farzin

Stated First Principles Achieving the 20 Year Perspective goals; Achievement of the Leaders instructions; Keeping to the Iranian-Islamic Development Model; Social Justice, Human Dignity and Justice, Social Security, Equitable Distribution of Income to Prevent Poverty, Corruption and Discrimination; Extensive peoples participation and popularising social and economic domains; Establishing an enabling environment for achieving long-term social and economic goals. Realisation of Article 44 of Constituion; Deregulation and participation; First in economy in the region; First in science, technology and ICT in region.

Change in Planning Approach – Main Concept and Indicator: Decade of Progress and Justice; – First of two Plans to achieve above; – Focus of first stage on governance and management (especially on change management but keeping to Islamic-Iranian values); – Ensure mobilisation and participation of all groups to achieve goals.

Writing Style Specificity of goals limited – mostly broad and subject to interpretation; Mostly guidelines and rules; Focus on actions and budgets mainly through financial and legal supports (making it more of a budgeting type document)

Chapter 1 – Islamic-Iranian Culture in 17 clauses; Intermediate results; – DSPAC will produce the Islamic-Iranian development model by the second year; – A culture re-engineering road map produced; – An international cultural relations document produced; – Tourism Development Fund established More mosques and prayers rooms instituted everywhere; Imam Khomeini’s approach/values/thoughts institutionalised.

Chapter 2 – Science and Technology in 11 clauses; Review and rewriting of curricula, especially human sciences; Producing a Fundamental Transformation Plan; Establish a National Sci-Tech Development Fund; Achieve 1 st and 2 nd place in Sci-Tech in region; R&D achieves 3% of GDP by end of Plan; Support to technical/vocational/skills training; Reduced direct management of schools and more PPP; 20% of schools managed through “Board of Trustees”.

Chapter 3 – Social Affairs In 21 clauses; HDI improvement through coordination between health, education and employment; Government gives itself right to adjust pension and social funds and to provide more flexibility in utilising private funds; Standard Basic Health-Care Package produced; Reduce Out-of-Pocket health expenditure to 30% - mainly through health insurance improvement; Social protection restructuring; Development of a National Youth Plan; Supporting female homemakers (and ensuring that their homemaking activities are accounted for in National Accounting systems).

Chapter 4 – Management and Admin. SMART ID Card; National Spatial Data Infrastructure; Increased deconcentration and outsourcing; Support to elite and merit-based systems development; A clause on accountability and transparency;

Chapter 5 - Economy Improving the business environment: SMART Brand systems; easier and more coordinated licensing procedures; Productivity: National Productivity Plan (based on performance- based programming concepts); establish a National Standards Org. Employment: support SME networks and clusters; formalising activities; fiscal incentives; Trade: increased empowerment of business associations and guilds to regulate; more tariffs reduction; removal of any remaining non- tariff barriers; more fiscal incentives for value added/exports; establish an ODA Fund; Establish a National Development Fund (using 20% of oil/gas revenue); Tax/GDP becomes 10%; raise share of Cooperative sector to 25% of GDP (and Coop Development Bank has 15% of money sector)

Chapter 6 – Regional Development Provincial and District Programming Committee’s established; 10% to 20% of resources may be reallocated; Earmarking of 10% for special development purposes; Development of mechanisms and indicators; National Spatial Planning Council established (to develop and m&e an integrated national spatial development plan); Strategic Environmental Assessment System developed; Regional Development Council;

Chapter 9 – Budget and Supervision Mainly rules about performance based planning, budgeting and auditing and result based management frameworks (in 11 clauses); Indicates a significant shift towards RBM type accountability frameworks; Project based mainly, although mentions orientation towards integration and clusters (joint programming).

Can the 5 th Plan Meet Iran’s Development Challenges

Iran’s Major Development Challenges and Requirements Governance – Civil rights (improved participatory and decentralized processes) – Institutional / Management modes of functioning inadequate to current complexity and needs (requires improved and integrated working standards, procedures, practices – as well as performance based planning and budgeting) – Economic management and welfare outcomes (requiring integrated socio-economic programming) – Social development policy (requiring resource and capacity support) – Environmental and natural resource management Economic – Non-sustainable economic growth and inappropriate investment (requiring increased private sector development and investment in conjunction with CSR) – Unemployment and under-employment (requiring integrated employment generation and decent jobs) Social – Inequality (requiring inclusive growth processes that combine social development, economic growth, productive employment and human development investment) – Women’s participation (requiring gender mainstreaming, especially at national planning/budgeting) – Youth rights, employment and welfare (requiring both mainstreamed and targeted approaches) Natural Resources – Environmental degradation (requiring improved standards and integrating project and programme approaches in environmental assessments)