These cooperatives have around 5,590 members, creating an aggregate of 6,709 jobs, which indicates a 38% decline and a 76% rise respectively, Mehr News Agency reported.
Most of the cooperatives were founded in Fars and Khorasan Razavi provinces. The lion’s share of the new enterprises was launched in the fields of agriculture and industry.
The number of newly-founded cooperatives during the nine months to Dec. 21, however, declined to 2,530 units from 2,880 in last year’s corresponding period, Financial Tribune reported.
The parliament has tasked the government with increasing the share of cooperatives in gross domestic product to 25% by the end of the Sixth Five-Year Development Plan (March 2022).
This share was also targeted by the Fifth Five-Year Development Plan which, according to the head of Iran Chamber of Cooperatives, Bahman Abdollahi, now stands at 7%.