Hossein Afshin: Government Should Remove Barriers to Creativity Instead of Intervening

Hossein Afshin, the president's deputy for science, technology and knowledge-based economy, stressed the need to shift from a production-based economy to a market-based one. He said that producing quality goods alone does not guarantee economic success, and that without access to markets, brands, distribution networks and intellectual property rights, a major part of a product's value goes to others.

Hossein Afshin, Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, emphasizing the necessity of transitioning from a production-oriented economy to a market-oriented economy, said: High-quality product production alone is not a guarantee of economic success, and without access to the market, brand, distribution network, and intellectual property rights, an important part of the value of products goes to others.

According to Ambassador Arjan Hossein Afshin, Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, at the "Manveen" event, emphasizing the need to change the country's economic approach, he said: Having a high-quality product is not enough for economic success, and producers must be able to know their market, find customers, and obtain a suitable share of the final value of the product.

Stating that Iran has significant capacities in the fields of culture, art and science, he said: "The problem is not only production, but the gap between having assets and having transaction power." A product that does not have a brand, distribution network, intellectual property rights and market access may leave a large part of its economic value to others.

Emphasizing the necessity of moving from a production-oriented perspective to a market-oriented one, Afshin said: supporting companies and paying facilities without finding customers and creating a market for products will not lead to a stable economy. According to him, the creative economy chain should include from idea and design to production, financing, intellectual property, marketing and export.

Referring to the role of the government in the development of creative industries, the scientific deputy of the president stated: "Creativity needs more than government encouragement, it needs the government to get out of its way." He considered the duty of the government to remove obstacles, reduce investment risk, strengthen intellectual property rights and facilitate access to the market.

Referring to the role of technologies such as artificial intelligence, 3D printing and augmented reality in the development of creative industries, Afshin said that instead of consuming other people's products, Iran should use its cultural and artistic capacities to produce products with a global market.

Emphasizing the necessity of reforming financing mechanisms, he added: In the new economy, an important part of the value of companies is in intangible assets such as software, brand, design, data, and intellectual property, and financial instruments should be developed in accordance with these assets.

Afshin further stated that the measure of success of "Manvin" event is not the number of booths and participants, but its economic results and said: it should be checked how many new products have reached the market, how many investment contracts have been formed, how many businesses have grown and how many Iranian works have been introduced to foreign audiences.

In the end, he emphasized that Iran's economy, in addition to producing high-quality products, should also strengthen the ability to understand the market and transform knowledge and creativity into wealth; So that the results of scientific and technological development are visible in employment, income, well-being and people's lives.