A Parliamentary Representative Says 20 Million People in Iran Are Marginalized
A member of the Parliamentary Commission for Urban Development says that 20 million people out of Iran’s population, or “approximately one-quarter” of the country’s population, are “marginalized.”
According to the ILNA news agency report on Tuesday, February 16, Mojtaba Yousefi stated that based on the 2017 census, 6.5 million Iranian families are renters, and said that despite 800,000 marriages annually, the population of renters is constantly increasing.
According to the report, rental prices in urban areas of Iran have increased 54 percent compared to last year.
Yousefi, noting that in the 1980s the construction rate was “900,000 residential units” and has now decreased to less than “200,000 urban and rural units,” announced that the previous government “proudly” declared that it had not built any housing over the past eight years.
Based on the official report of the Central Bank of Iran, rental housing growth in December 2021 in Tehran increased 50.7 percent and in all urban areas 54 percent compared to December of last year.
Some social media users have criticized the rate of rental increases.
Amir Ebtehaj, a journalist, wrote in a tweet referring to the promise of “free housing,” “exactly 43 years later,” “container dwelling” rental in southern Tehran with a deposit of 50 tomans is now seen at 200 tomans per month.
Hasan Bordal, a graphic designer and photographer, also citing his personal experience, said that the amount of “deposits” in similar cases has at least doubled compared to six months ago.”
Source: Voice of America
