Nowruz Speech Addressed to the Nation of Iran

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure family, especially the Awaited One on earth.

I congratulate all of you dear viewers and those who will hear these remarks, and I adorn my words on this day marking the beginning of the year and the century with the name and memory of the Awaited One (may our souls be sacrificed for him), who himself is the spring of hearts and the freshness of eras:

Peace be upon you, O appointed flag, and the knowledge poured forth, and the vast mercy, a promise that is not false. Peace be upon you when you rise, peace be upon you when you sit, peace be upon you when you read and clarify, peace be upon you when you pray and are humble, peace be upon you when you bow and prostrate, peace be upon you when you glorify and magnify, peace be upon you when you praise and seek forgiveness.

This is the third Nowruz that I am deprived of the blessing of being present at the shrine of the blessed Imam Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha (peace be upon him); I am deprived of being in front of the enthusiastic gathering of his pilgrims, both travelers and residents; therefore, I send greetings from afar and send blessings. O God, send blessings upon Your Wali, Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha, as many as are in Your knowledge, with a lasting prayer as long as Your kingdom and sovereignty endure. O God, grant peace to Your Wali, Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha, peace be upon him, as many as are in Your knowledge, with a lasting peace as long as Your glory, greatness, and majesty endure.

Regarding the Iranian Nowruz at the beginning of the year and this spring festival, there are points that I have sometimes mentioned; one point that I would like to present today is the intertwining of this national holiday with remembrance, supplication, and spirituality. This matter may be rare among the New Year celebrations of nations - I do not have much information, but I doubt it - either it is rare or unique that people associate their national holiday with prayer, remembrance, and spirituality, and express their devotion to the Lord. Last night, at the moment of the New Year, almost all segments of the people, the elderly, the distinguished, the scholars, the activists in various scientific fields - in the fields of missiles, nanotechnology, biology, etc. - to the youth engaged in jihadist camps who spend the holiday in remote villages away from their families to serve the people, all began this moment of transition with "O Turner of the year and the conditions"; they spoke to God, asked from God, and cleansed their hearts with the remembrance of God; this is one point.

Another point regarding Nowruz is the special taste and inclination of Iranians, which evokes a sense of deep thought: to consider spring as the beginning of their year. Spring is a symbol of hope, a messenger of hope; spring tells humanity that autumn and shedding leaves will surely pass, and freshness, renewal, and innovation will surely come; this is the characteristic of spring. It conveys such a message to the people: the message of freshness, the message of growth. Of course, this hope was even more pronounced this year, due to coinciding with the 15th of Sha'ban, which is also the day of the birth of the great hope of history and humanity; and hope is the source of all movements and advancements. I take this opportunity to say: those who speak for the people, send messages, write, and strive, should create hope among the people as much as they can; hope is an important factor for movement and progress. Thanks be to God, the great God has also provided the grounds for hope for the Iranian nation; the grounds for hope among our nation and country are, thank God, not few. Let the enemies be enraged by the hope of the Iranian nation, and God willing, hope will increase day by day in the hearts of the Iranian nation.

Today, our primary focus is on economic issues, which I presented last night as the message of the year and the slogan of the year, and I will explain it a bit. Of course, there are other matters that, if time permits, God willing, I will present. The reason we discuss economic issues on this first day of the year is, first, due to the importance of the economic issue; that is, if economic growth accompanied by justice occurs in the country, all grounds for progress will be activated, and the country will achieve real progress; that is, the economy has such a pivotal role. Secondly, in the past decade, in the 90s, we have faced a buildup of economic challenges that we must somehow overcome. We must, God willing, think correctly about economic issues, act correctly, and move forward so that the means of comfort for the nation can be created in this regard, God willing. Therefore, we raise the economic discussion from this perspective.

In economics, the main issue is national production, which we have briefly mentioned, and I have repeated the issue of production in the slogans of the past three or four years, and of course, governments and officials have done what they could, to the best of their abilities, considering international conditions; they have done some work, made efforts, but in my opinion, today our main issue, the main issue for the executive officials of the country and those who are involved in these matters, in managing the country, is the economy. Well, new approaches are also observed that encourage one; that is, if God willing, these popular approaches and public participation continue appropriately, it is encouraging and creates signs for greater hope in people.

I would like to mention one point here, and that is that in the field of economics, what I am presenting, the demands that are raised, are mainly addressed to the country's officials; primarily to the executive branch, somewhat to the legislative branch, and even to the judiciary and some affiliated organizations; it is mainly addressed to them. Why do we raise these issues related to them in the public space and in the national public speech? The reason is that it is good for the people to be aware of economic issues and policies in the public space, to know my demands, and to support and back the officials who act and work on these issues. Of course, there are also responsibilities on the people themselves, which I will clarify today regarding knowledge-based economy, that there are significant works that the people, especially the youth, must undertake. And of course, this public discourse may lead to the institutions providing better support for these issues.

My point today is that to grow the country's economy and reform economic affairs, we must decisively move towards a knowledge-based economy; this is the summary of my remarks today. What does "knowledge-based economy" mean? It means that knowledge and advanced technology should play a significant and complete role in all areas of production. When we say "all areas of production," it means even the selection of the production work; because it is not necessary for one to do all production tasks. The selection of that production work must also arise from a knowledgeable, insightful, and scientific perspective; this is the meaning of a knowledge-based economy, which should intervene in all areas of the economy. If we pursue this policy and make knowledge the foundation and basis of the country's economy and increase knowledge-based economic enterprises - which I will mention later - it will bring many benefits to the country and the economy: it reduces costs; that is, a knowledge-based economy reduces production costs; it increases productivity, which is one of our current problems; it improves product quality, enhances it, and makes products competitive; that is, in global markets, we can use these products as competitive products, and similarly within the country; that is, even if we do not impose many tariffs on imports and imports flood in, when domestic products have better quality and lower prices, people will naturally favor them; such characteristics exist in knowledge-based production.

If I want to give an example, I will mention agriculture, which unfortunately is somewhat further from the realm of knowledge-based enterprises compared to the sectors of industry and services. If we increase knowledge-based companies in agriculture and apply knowledge in agricultural matters, we can maximize our use in seed improvement - which is very important in agricultural product production - in modern irrigation, in new production methods, in better utilization of water and soil - which are two valuable products that we have previously referred to - we can maximize our productivity and improve these matters. When we can achieve these advancements in agriculture and create a serious transformation, it will first ensure the country's food security, meaning that the country will never face problems regarding food issues, and there will be no concerns; secondly, it will increase farmers' incomes; it is very good that our farmers' incomes increase and they feel encouraged to continue in agriculture, which is an extremely valuable product; likewise, the issue of water scarcity can be resolved. In our country, what is commonly known and said - which I have opinions on - is that we are facing water scarcity; well, if our agriculture becomes knowledge-based, the problem of water scarcity will also be solved. For example, I mentioned this in agriculture as a sample.

In all other sectors - whether related to production or services - the same blessings exist; that is, the volume of products increases, quality rises, and the total cost decreases; in fact, making production knowledge-based enhances the productivity of economic activities; this is an important matter, a sensitive and fundamental point. As previously mentioned, one of the country's problems is reduced productivity; that is, in proportion to the amount we consume, we do not utilize our consumption effectively; in various sectors, it is the same; productivity in the country is low. I have mentioned to our dear people regarding the intensity of energy consumption in this first speech of the year, several years ago in Mashhad, that the amount of electricity we consume does not correspond to the effective use of this consumption; on average, we lag behind the world; we are behind in terms of productivity. And it is the same in other subjects. If we move towards a knowledge-based economy, this significant economic problem will be resolved.

Well, in terms of making production knowledge-based, there are technical discussions that I am not specialized in, of course, there is information, but it is not necessary to present them in this public gathering; these should be discussed by the country's officials, specialists in this field in relevant gatherings, and followed up so that, God willing, this matter is resolved well. I will just briefly mention that achieving and attaining equitable progress in the economy and solving the problem of poverty in the country - which we want to solve the problem of poverty and financial deprivation in the country - can only be achieved through strengthening "production"; if we strengthen production, which strengthening it also means being knowledge-based, this great goal will, God willing, be achieved.

Two necessary points must be mentioned here that are related to the issue of knowledge-based companies.

One point is that we have knowledge-based companies, but they need to be increased. The second point is that we can do this. Currently, we have slightly less than 7,000 knowledge-based companies. There are approximately 6,600 or 6,700 knowledge-based companies in the country, of which nearly 4,500 are production companies; the rest are service-oriented and similar. This number creates about 300,000 direct jobs, which is a relatively significant figure. Of course, those I asked about this and received responses from said that they estimate it to be over 300,000; they estimate, for example, that 320,000 direct jobs were created in the past year 1400. I asked how much this amount could be increased in 1401 and how many more companies could be added. They told me a maximum of thirty percent. I am not satisfied; I believe that thirty percent is not a figure that is desirable for the country and does not meet the country's needs. My expectation from the officials is that it should increase by one hundred percent, meaning the companies should double. Therefore, 300,000 direct jobs will turn into 600,000 direct jobs in the year 1401.

Of course, this should not lead to creating a company and calling it knowledge-based while it is not; no, knowledge-based companies should truly be established; our officials must strive and carry out this work; especially in sectors that are lagging, like the agricultural sector I mentioned. Knowledge-based companies in the agricultural sector constitute four percent of all our knowledge-based companies. Four percent of these companies are related to the agricultural sector, which is of great importance, as I have pointed out. The issue of agriculture is important, the issue of animal husbandry is very important, and the country must achieve complete security and necessary self-sufficiency in basic food products. We must achieve self-sufficiency in wheat, animal feed - barley, corn, and similar - and essential materials for oil production. We must achieve self-sufficiency in corn, barley, and other items that are called essential goods; and this can be done. The country is vast, there are many opportunities, and we have many fertile plains. In various parts of the country, we have fertile plains; if we work on these, which I encouraged in previous years regarding Khuzestan, I urged that some actions be taken in Khuzestan and some in Ilam, and some in Sistan. Of course, the amount we requested and was promised was not achieved, but some good progress was made. This can be expanded, this work can be done; we have good fertile plains, and these plains should be utilized for [providing] essential goods.

I would like to mention this; the respected President, Mr. Raisi, told me that during one of his trips abroad, the officials there told him that whatever watermelon and tomatoes you have and produce, we will buy from you; he was surprised and said, how can you buy watermelon and, for example, tomatoes from us when you have land, water, and all these agricultural facilities? He said, no, we do not allocate these lands for tomatoes and watermelons; these lands are for wheat, for corn, for fodder; this [statement] is correct. Of course, I am not saying that we should not plant watermelon or, for example, vegetables and tomatoes; all of these are necessary, but we must utilize the existing facilities in the country primarily to produce important and essential food materials, essential goods; we must be able to procure the majority of the country's resources from these.

I also want our dear people to know that the extent to which we waste bread, how much bread is thrown away, they should know that our agricultural sector is unfortunately one of the most import-dependent sectors of the country; it is one of the most import-dependent sectors of the country; and it is more than necessary; this must be adjusted, and of course, fighting this dependency is very difficult; because some of these agricultural imports from abroad have very significant profits; they resist. A few years ago, I told one of the agricultural ministers regarding "canola," which is one of the raw materials for vegetable oil production, to follow this up; he - now there are details, but the summary is - said they do not allow it; they say we must import the raw materials for oil; that is, they do not allow it; perhaps some elements within the ministry, within the government apparatus are also involved in creating obstacles; but we must stand firm, that is, it is a difficult task, but this difficult task must be done.

So the first point I mentioned is that the number of knowledge-based companies compared to the needs of the country is low and must be increased, especially in the agricultural sector and of course in all other sectors; officials must strive, and the officials' effort is to support this; because knowledge-based companies belong to the people; the people, the youth form these companies, but the institutions must support them; support mainly means purchasing their products, utilizing them, or providing them with necessary facilities. Of course, in the report given to me, the ministries that provide this assistance have been named; and the ministries that do not provide assistance and should do so have also been identified, which now the respected government and the respected President must address; these do not concern us much.

In any case, the number of knowledge-based companies in any sector can be considered an indicator of the progress of that sector in the government. For example, if we see that knowledge-based companies in, for example, the oil and gas sector and these downstream industries have increased, we can give a high score to the Minister of Oil; or if the opposite is true, vice versa. This seems to me to be one of the indicators. This first point is that knowledge-based companies must increase.

The second point is that this work, thank God, is possible; this work is possible; they should not say that you must, for example, calculate the facilities; yes, it requires facilities, but the most important facilities are human resources; we have a lot of potential in terms of human resources. I tell you that a large number of our highly educated individuals, a high percentage - which this percentage has been reported to me - of those who are highly educated are working in fields unrelated to their studies; why? These can be employed in their own fields, supported, and assisted to form knowledge-based companies; of course, they must be identified and followed up. We have individuals who are making significant progress today; in the field of nuclear technologies, in recombinant drugs, in nanotechnology, in biotechnology, in stem cells; these are great works; we have so many distinguished individuals in these fields; well, these distinguished individuals can also be found and identified in various other fields, and they certainly exist, and the young specialized forces in our country, thank God, are one of the great treasures or perhaps the greatest existing wealth of this country that, thank God, exists and can be utilized for enriching the country with their knowledge, their efforts, and their youth.

Of course, these discussions were related to knowledge-based companies and making production knowledge-based; I also mentioned job creation, which is very important. Job creation will be achieved through these knowledge-based companies; that is, if we can genuinely create and establish these companies without falling into the mistakes that have sometimes occurred in the past, jobs will also increase. I mentioned past mistakes; we have had various plans in different governments with various names to provide banking facilities to individuals to increase production; almost all of these plans have been unsuccessful; all of these plans have been unsuccessful. Throwing money around and acting indiscriminately will not lead anywhere; this work must be done with great precision, study, and correctly, and the activities of knowledge-based companies must take shape in a chain. Of course, I have also kept in mind that some recent decisions made in decision-making centers may harm some small and medium-sized companies; the government should not allow this harm to occur, and banks should not allow this harm to occur; of course, this point should be taken into account.

Well, we have discussed the topic of the economy in detail, which is important. Last year, in the first speech of the year, I raised this issue that the country's economy should not be tied to the issue of American sanctions or similar; they should not say that as long as there are sanctions, this is the situation; no, even with American sanctions, it is possible to make progress in the economy. Fortunately, the new policies in the country have shown that this statement is correct, and they have done just that; even with American sanctions, it is possible to boost foreign trade and increase it, which has increased, it is also possible to enter regional contracts, which, thank God, the government has been able to do, and it is possible to achieve advancements and improvements in oil and some other economic issues, reaching a better situation, which, thank God, has happened, even though American sanctions are still in place. Of course, I do not say that we should not seek to lift sanctions; no, we have repeatedly said that those who are working and striving in this area, it is fine for them to pursue it; but the essence of the matter is that we should manage the country in such a way that sanctions cannot inflict a significant and essential blow to it. Now, sanctions may cause some damage, but they should not cause a major loss and damage to the country's economy; this is the responsibility of the officials who must, God willing, carry this out. I also recommend the same this year; I say again that [the country's issues] should not be tied to sanctions.

This year, I have an additional recommendation; because it is said that now, for example, oil prices have risen, oil revenues have increased, well, now what do we want to do with this increase in oil revenues? There are two ways to proceed: one is to look and say, well, our foreign revenues are high, let’s increase imports, let the people enjoy, let them find comfort, and so on; this [view] certainly has a good appearance, but a very bad essence; this is squandering the fundamental assets of the country. Another way is to use oil revenues for the country's infrastructure, for the fundamental works of the country; to strengthen the foundations so that the economy becomes rooted in the country and we can utilize them. This is regarding economic issues.

But regarding other issues. Well, the world has many issues, and we are also facing global issues; in various fields, we must think, plan, make decisions, move, and act. When our nation looks at the current events in the world, when you look at what is happening globally, you see the legitimacy of the Iranian nation and the truthfulness of the Iranian nation in confronting the front of global arrogance clearer and more evident than ever. Our nation's choice in confronting arrogance was not submission; it was resistance, non-dependence, preserving independence, strengthening the internal system, and the nation and the country; these are national decisions; this was correct. When we look at global events, we see that this [decision] is correct. You refer to the events in Afghanistan, observe, look at the quality of the Americans' exit; first, they stayed in Afghanistan for twenty years and what did they do in this oppressed Muslim country; then how did they leave and what problems did they create for the people; and they do not return the assets of the Afghan nation! This is Afghanistan; that is Ukraine, where its president addresses the West - which the Westerners themselves brought him to power - with what harsh tone; this is the situation in Yemen and the daily bombardment of the oppressed and truly resilient people of Yemen; this is the work of Saudi Arabia, which in one day beheads eighty people! Eighty young people, even teenagers - as the news reached - when one observes these events, one feels what oppression prevails in the world; what darkness prevails in the world; the world is in the hands of what bloodthirsty wolves.

In the Ukraine incident, everyone saw Western racism. They stop a train of refugees fleeing the country and under the problems of war to separate black people from white people and to let the black people off. They openly express regret in their media that this time the war is not in the Middle East, it is in Europe. That is, if war and bloodshed and fratricide occur in the Middle East - of course, in what they call the Middle East - and here, it is acceptable [but] if it is in Europe, it is a problem. This racism is so clear, so evident! They speak openly like this, they express themselves like this. In the world, atrocities occur in the countries that are obedient to them, and absolutely no voice comes out from them, and at the same time, with all this oppression and all this tyranny, with all this darkness-creating, they claim to advocate human rights and extort tribute from independent countries, threaten them; the Iranian nation sees these matters with open eyes; of course, the whole world is observing and witnessing, and today, in our opinion, it is one of the most disgraceful and blatant periods of contemporary history in terms of oppression and aggression and arrogance that, unfortunately, the tyrants of the world are carrying out, and the people of the world can directly observe this oppression and see who holds the fate of the world in their hands!

Of course, we, the Iranian nation, have elevated our way of working over these years, day by day, seriously, logically, and based on principles. Today, we need work, effort, and seriousness more than ever. We especially need solidarity, synergy; solidarity and synergy among our dear nation, unity and agreement of words. We also need increasing synergy and solidarity among the country's officials; they must help each other. There are those who are at the forefront of the movement; others must assist them, support them, and the three branches of power, the armed forces, and others in various sectors must help each other, have solidarity with each other, and the nation must also have true solidarity with the country's officials, support them, and assist them.

Well, sometimes one observes disputes among the people or between some officials with each other or between officials and the people, often trivial; one looks and sees that often these arise from imaginations and delusions and in some cases from lack of piety. Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) often repeated during the 60s, when there were many disagreements among officials, in his speeches that these disagreements stem from self-love and desires; it is truly like that. Many of these disputes and conflicts arise from self-love and lack of consideration and piety and the like; these must be set aside, and we must not allow the general mobilization of the Iranian nation towards righteous paths - whether scientific paths, practical paths, resistant paths, or social service paths; in all of these - to be destroyed by these disputes, as He said: "And do not dispute, lest you fail and lose your strength."

We hope that God Almighty will make the Iranian nation increasingly joyful, successful, and prosperous day by day, and may He increase the successes of the caring officials, those who truly care for the nation, who want to work for the nation, who seek God's pleasure, and may He help them day by day, and God willing, all of you dear ones, all of the Iranian nation be included in the pure prayers of the Awaited One (may our souls be sacrificed for him), and may God, God willing, unite the pure spirit of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) with his saints; the pure souls of the dear martyrs and the distinguished martyrs of the country - although all martyrs are distinguished; I read the conditions and works of various martyrs; those whose names many have not heard, one sees that they are truly distinguished individuals - may God, God willing, unite them with the martyrs of the early Islam.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.