Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), a private sector voice in Iran, remains under pressure by the state months after a vote was held in March to elect new members for the chamber.

ICCIMA, known as “the private sector’s parliament”, is 140-year-old and represents thousands of private businesses across the country. The organisation is considered a rare remaining defender of independent enterprises in the Islamic Republic, whose lion’s share of the economy is controlled by the state. With branches at the city level across the country, the chambers seek to uphold the rights of independent businesses in the face of the omnipotent state with overarching reach in almost all aspects of the economy.

On June 18th, Hossein  Salahvarzi, a prominent businessman and vocal government critic, was elected as chairman in the recent elections.

One of his opponents, Younes Zhaeleh, who has been noted to have close connections to the government, received only 95 votes compared to Salahvarzi's 265 votes. Another candidate, Hossein Pir-Moazzen received 62 votes in the election.

Since Selahvarzi was elected the new president of the Iran chamber in June, he has been under fire among state-run milieu and cronies.

Though he was chosen in a majority vote, he was not the man of choice for the authorities, who have sought to have their man in the chamber. Soon after the election results were announced, a series of attacks began. Later, it was claimed that he had not passed the vetting process before the election.

As pressure ramped up, state-run IRNA reported that Selahvarzi had submitted his resignation from the presidency of the chamber of commerce.

“We are (I am) serving in the Iran Chamber of Commerce supported by the vote and kindness of our dear colleagues and not by rumours and fabrications. Moreover, we are always humble and submissive before the law.

We work (serve) instead of engaging in lies and accusations so that, God willing, we can overcome the economic deficiencies,” Selahvarzi wrote on X, formerly Twitter on August 5.

Following the media campaign, members of the board of directors have thrown their weight behind the man to safeguard the rights of the outnumbered representation of the private sector. Yet, there seems to be no end in sight regarding the concerted campaign against the Chamber head.

“The election of board members was held in a completely legal manner, and the representatives cast a majority vote” Mehrdad Ebad a senior member of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, wrote on August 5.

“The monitoring board has also confirmed the results. No entity can nullify this election as per the existing laws,” he added.

Ebad said that he hopes the Supreme Supervisory Council, a high-level board will end the disputes by issuing a final statement that respects the vote of the chamber’s board members

According to Mohsen Jalalpur, former president of ICCIMA, chambers of commerce are the most reliable source for observing policy-making developments and economic trends in Iran. Despite criticism, they can make significant contributions in making accurate economic decisions and conveying important signals from the private sector's motivations and intentions to the policy-making system.

“The calculations and analyses of the chambers of commerce are vital if the decision makers are willing to design a win-win game among all economic players. The point is that the representatives of this large organisation are the members of different manufacturing, commerce, industry and mining sectors,” he wrote for Persian business daily Donya-e Eqtesad.

“Contrary to belief, chamber members are not from specific trade and do not have common interests. Therefore, if competent people make up the chamber’s board, they can be vigilant watchers for the country’s business environment and work to consolidate important economic institutions such as competition and ownership,” the businessman said.

Jalalpour believes the primary mission of the chamber is the monitoring of the business environment and consolidating important economic institutions such as competition and ownership, and not bargaining to gain more privileges and support.

“The leading members of the chambers should be the voice of the real private sector; a sector that does not seek to acquire wealth through privileges and rent-seeking practices,” he said.

The ICCIMA has been pivotal in recent years in finding ways around Iran’s sanctioned status forging links with several regional countries, including Russia and Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, the Chamber has been pivotal in pushing its members to invest in regional joint venture programmes, including holding several events and forums to drum up trade.