German Institute for Global and Area Studies | Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien

Diversification and Economic Resilience of Iran

This project focuses on factors that have shaped Iran’s strategies for economic diversification and resilience and examines the long-term socioeconomic consequences of such strategies. Economic diversification in this study is not limited to the traditional definition (i.e. the state’s strategy for diversifying economic activities away from the hydrocarbon sector). It looks beyond the country’s borders and captures diversification of trade and economic partnerships with Iran’s strategic allies.
EU, 2021-2024

Head

Dr. Sara Bazoobandi

Research Fellow / Research Team Spokesperson

Research Questions

1. What are the main drivers of economic diversification in Iran?
2. How are the economic policies formulated and implemented?
3. What are the challenges, abilities, and aspirations for the IR’s economic diversification and resilience strategies, given the rising domestic economic pressure, the Middle East and North Africa region’s geopolitics, and international sanctions?

Contribution to International Research

DIVERSIRAN seeks to contribute in advancing scholarly knowledge on Iran's socio-economic, as well as political, environments. It sheds lights on economic policies, political decision making processes and their impact on the Iranian society.

Research Design and Methods

The project will adopt a mixed-method qualitative approach that is formed of three main methodological components: 1)systematic literature review; 2) qualitative content analysis; and 3) process tracing.

GIGA Focus Middle East | 7/2024

Expansion of the Russo–Iranian Nexus

Sanction evasion, economic and military collaboration, and narratives of resistance against a US-led liberal global order bind Russia and Iran together. To thwart their continued and intensified power projection, the West needs to strengthen ties with other key actors in the Middle East and Eurasia.

Dr. Sara Bazoobandi

Research Fellow / Research Team Spokesperson

Olena Osypenkova

Doctoral Researcher

GIGA Focus Middle East | 3/2024

Purification of the Higher Education System and Jihad of Knowledge in Iran

“Purification” of the higher education and “jihad of knowledge” have assisted the Iranian government in advancing its military, cyber-based, and nuclear capabilities. This paper reviews these strategies and evaluates their outcomes.

Dr. Sara Bazoobandi

Research Fellow / Research Team Spokesperson

GIGA Focus Middle East | 1/2024

Ten Things to Watch in the Middle East and North Africa in 2024

From the Gaza War to other regional conflicts and the lasting importance of oil, the Middle East and North Africa region remains pivotal for Europe. We present ten issues that will play a central role in the relationship between both regions in the year ahead.

Prof. Dr. Eckart Woertz

Director of the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies / Editor GIGA Focus Middle East

Olena Osypenkova

Doctoral Researcher

Asian Journal of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies | 2023

The Evolvement of Iran–Israel’s Rivalry in the Red Sea and Eastern Africa

This paper reviews the history of involvement of the two countries in these regions, and analyses how policies of confrontation in both countries have changed and developed over the different historical periods.