Fifth Specialized Maritime Economy Meeting Held with a Focus on the Challenges and Prospects of the Makran Coasts

Seyed Mojtaba Hoseini, reporter for Sadaye Sama

The fifth session of the Specialized Maritime Economy Desk was held in collaboration with the Maritime Governance Development Think Tank and hosted by the Strategic Research Institute of the Expediency Discernment Council.

The session was attended by a group of experts, including Professor Mohammad Hossein Karim as the chair of the desk, Dr. Hossein Niyavand as its secretary, Dr. Homeira Rigi—one of the prominent figures and managers in the maritime economy in Sistan and Baluchestan Province—along with Mojtaba Hosseini, an active specialist in marine activities and sea cage construction, as well as several scholars and experts in the maritime economy. Participants from Sistan and Baluchestan also engaged in discussions on the challenges and prospects of the general policies for developing a maritime-based economy.

Dr. Homeira Rigi, former Chairwoman of the Board and CEO of the Chabahar Free Zone Organization, delivered a detailed presentation on the geopolitical and geoeconomic significance of Chabahar—Iran’s only oceanic port and free zone—and the Makran coasts as a bridge of peace for international corridors, contributing to sustainable development and regional security.

She emphasized that if Chabahar, as the tangible representation of the beautiful Makran coasts, is properly managed and developed, it can play a significant role in Iran’s maritime economy. Achieving this goal requires a clear operational plan with unified, agile management and policymaking at a transnational level. She warned that unless we recognize Chabahar and the Makran coasts not as the country’s periphery but as the frontline of national development and sustainable security, a historical opportunity may be lost.

Rigi added that if economic growth and development take place in these coastal areas and in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, not only will security become less costly, but it will also emerge naturally as a result of economic progress. She stressed that sustainable development and security must originate from within the region, and this can be achieved more quickly and more sustainably through a combination of local knowledge and a global perspective.