Since the 1979 revolution, the Islamic Republic of Iran has grappled with the problems of running the complex, rapidly changing economy inherited from the Shah, under an Islamic banner. Castigating the ancien regime for establishing a consumerist, dependent economy along Western lines, the theocratic regime has tried to create an Islamic economic framework on the basis of independence, self-sufficiency and distributional justice.

Faced with the difficulties of managing an oil-based and export-led economy within this narrow framework, the government has encountered numerous problems and has had to reverse its course in many areas. The result has been a rudderless economy, attempting to combine Islamic orthodoxy with the exigencies of the dominant international system of global free enterprise.

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This book is the first to provide a comprehensive account of Iran's economy in the post-revolutionary period. Drawing on all the available sources, Jahangir Amuzegar examines the way in which, after the initial turmoil of the revolution, the Iranian economy evolved to adopt a statist and interventionist stance before reverting back in more recent years to a pragmatic, mixed-market model.

After detailed discussions of the economy's basic sectors, major national economic trends, and the government's economic policies, the author offers an assessment of the economy's overall performance against the regime's initial agenda. The final chapters discuss the extent of the dilemma confronting the government.

1. This timely evaluation of the Islamic Republic's economic record underscores Iran's unique status as the world's first modern theocracy, and provides a prime example of Islamic fundamentalism in action. Written in a lucid style, Iran's Economy Under the Islamic Republic is accessible to general readers while also providing the documentation and analysis demanded by specialists.