43

Article 43: In order to secure the economic independence of society, to uproot poverty and deprivation, to fulfill the needs of human beings in the process of growth, while also maintaining liberty, the economy of the Islamic Republic of Iran will be based on the following criteria: 1. providing the essential needs: housing, food, clothing, health, medical care, education, and the necessary provisions for the starting of a family for all; 2. providing the circumstances and opportunities for employment for everyone with the prospect of achieving full employment; making means of labor available to everyone who can work but does not have the means; this can be done through cooperatives, interest-free loans, or any other legitimate method that would not lead to the concentration and circulation of wealth in the hands of specific individuals or groups, or turn the government into a large and absolute employer. The application of these measures must take place with regard to the necessary factors; these steps must be taken with due regard for the necessities that determine public planning of the national economy at each stage of growth; 3. organizing the country’s economic plan in such a way that the form, content, and the working hours would leave each person, aside from his job-related occupations, sufficient time to invest in his own spiritual, political and social growth, to actively participate in the country’s leadership, and to cultivate his skills and sense of creativity; 4. respect for an individual’s freedom to choose an occupation; refraining from forcing an individual to take a specific job; preventing the exploitation of another’s labor; 5. banning the causing of damage to others, monopoly, hoarding, usury, and other invalid and forbidden interactions; 6. banning extravagance and squandering in all areas related to the economy, such as consumption, investment, production, distribution, and services; 7. using science and technology, and training skilled individuals to meet the needs of the nation for advancement and development of the country’s economy; 8. preventing the economic dominance of foreigners in the national economy; 9. emphasis on increasing agricultural, livestock, and industrial productions that fulfill general needs and take the country to a stage of self-sufficiency, and emancipate it from dependence.