Almost $5 billion of Iran government money for imports is missing
Almost five billion dollars of the Islamic Republic’s money is missing, says the Director of the Supreme Audit Court of Iran (SAC), Adel Azar.
Based on the official rate of 42,000 rials for one dollar, the Islamic Republic government distributes billions of cheap dollars among local importers to buy essential goods from overseas. Many of these importers are politically well-connected individuals.
Nevertheless, according to the SAC director, Adel Azar, $4.8 billion has been distributed, but no goods and products have been imported. The cheap dollars provided by the government for imports is in effect a subsidy.
However, Azar stopped short of naming the companies that received the missing dollars and did not mention what products were supposed to be imported with the money.
Speaking to a public session of Majles (Iranian parliament) on Tuesday, April 14, Azar disclosed that the government had distributed a total of $31 billion, on the official rate, to import essential goods to the country.
