TEHRAN - Iran’s government will continue efforts to remove barriers to rural development and support operators of eco-lodges as part of a broader strategy to revive villages and strengthen local economies and cultural identity, senior officials said on Tuesday at a national conference marking eco-lodge day.

Speaking at the event in Tehran, Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri said the administration viewed rural tourism and eco-lodges as instruments for preserving Iranian identity, promoting social cohesion and revitalizing village life.

“The government stands alongside rural communities with all its capacity,” Salehi-Amiri said, adding that President Masoud Pezeshkian had identified village revival and the strengthening of indigenous culture and local economies as national priorities.

Salehi-Amiri described eco-tourism not merely as the construction of accommodation facilities but as “a manifestation of Iranian cultural life” and a platform for rebuilding identity, ethics and social capital across the country.

He said Iran’s cultural and historical diversity provided significant potential for the development of rural tourism, adding that the country possessed more than one million historical sites, including 43,000 nationally registered heritage sites and 29 UNESCO-listed locations.

“Iranian people have the right to look upon their culture, art, history, music and civilization with pride,” he said.

The minister also linked cultural diversity to national unity, saying Iran’s ethnic groups including Kurds, Baluch people, Arabs, Turkmens, Lors and Persians, all contributed to a shared national identity.

“Iran is a land of coexistence among ethnicities, languages and cultures,” Salehi-Amiri said. “The diversity of music, clothing, rituals and dialects is not a factor of division but a valuable asset for strengthening national cohesion.”

He said the migration of villagers to urban areas in recent decades had weakened traditional Iranian lifestyles and that eco-tourism could help reverse the trend by supporting local economies, preserving handicrafts and encouraging population retention in rural regions.

“The path to saving villages is targeted support for eco-tourism,” he said. “Every village with an eco-lodge can become a center for preserving population, creating wealth, transmitting culture and strengthening national identity.”

According to Salehi-Amiri, the government has prepared programs aimed at facilitating loans, easing licensing procedures and supporting employment in villages and small towns.

He also pointed to increased travel to rural areas during the Nowruz holidays, saying millions of travelers had visited villages and eco-lodges, reflecting growing public interest in experiencing what he described as “authentic Iranian life.”

“When families stay in villages, they connect with local food, clothing, handicrafts, music and culture and carry those experiences back to cities,” he said.

Salehi-Amiri called cultural integration and national cohesion the main outcomes of eco-tourism development, describing eco-lodges as “a national project for reproducing Iranian identity and strengthening social capital.”

At the same conference, Vice President for Rural Development and Deprivation Reduction Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh criticized approaches to development focused primarily on infrastructure and construction projects.

“For years, we moved forward with the assumption that development would be achieved solely through highways, construction projects and physical infrastructure,” Hosseinzadeh said. “But development, before being a physical concept, is a political, social and cultural issue.”

He said sustaining rural communities depended more on social hope and quality of life than on construction projects alone.

“What matters most today for the sustainability of villages is the feeling of hope and the desire to remain among local people,” he said.

Hosseinzadeh argued that eco-tourism should move beyond a purely economic model toward what he called a “relationship economy” and an “economy of stay,” where human interaction, lived experience and cultural exchange become part of economic value creation.

“In the current social conditions, if we fail to manage social relations properly, society will face social erosion,” he said. “From this perspective, eco-lodges are not merely tourism businesses but capacities for strengthening social solidarity, rebuilding public trust and increasing social belonging.”

He also called for redefining the government’s approach to poverty reduction, saying “money and projects alone do not eliminate deprivation” and that sustainable development depended on empowering local communities and expanding public participation.

Addressing eco-lodge operators, Hosseinzadeh urged them to identify and document the real capacities of their provinces and villages and involve local residents as the main actors in development projects.

“Sustainable development is not possible without the presence and cooperation of local communities,” he said.

Deputy Tourism Minister Anoushirvan Mohseni-Bandpey said support for eco-lodges had become one of the government’s strategic priorities under the administration of President Pezeshkian.

He described rural tourism as one of the most sustainable segments of Iran’s tourism industry and said the government had established a specialized rural tourism office to coordinate policies, simplify support mechanisms and strengthen local capacities.

“Eco-lodges are not merely accommodation centers,” Mohseni-Bandpey said. “They are centers for preserving rural identity, indigenous lifestyles, rituals, traditions and Iran’s historical memory.”

He added that eco-lodges could help generate employment, distribute economic opportunities more evenly and reduce excessive rural migration.

Mohseni-Bandpey said Iran’s climate, cultural diversity and historical heritage made it one of the world’s most capable countries in tourism development.
Yavari Abiri, head of the National Ecolodge Association, said the eco-lodge community could serve as a bridge between the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and the Vice Presidency for Rural Development, enabling a major transformation in rural tourism infrastructure through the integration of tourism and rural development funding.
Abiri said the slogan “One Village, One Ecolodge” provided the right direction for the development of rural tourism, adding that focusing on villages as tourism destinations was a valuable initiative. However, he stressed that the sector still required serious support and attention.

Vice President for Women and Family Affairs Zahra Behrouz-Azar said family-run businesses, including eco-lodges, played a critical role in economic sustainability and cultural preservation.
“In family businesses, social and emotional capital occupy a central place,” Behrouz-Azar said. “Family reputation, professional authenticity and public trust are values that owners are unwilling to sacrifice even under difficult economic conditions.”

She described eco-lodges as living centers for preserving and transmitting local languages, customs, cuisine and ways of life to future generations and international audiences.

“These operators are guardians of Iran’s historical and civilizational identity,” she said.

Meanwhile, presidential social affairs adviser Ali Rabiei said eco-tourism should not be viewed solely through an industrial or economic lens.

“The widespread public interest in eco-lodges reflects a growing tendency to return to natural living, simple human relations and local identities,” Rabiei said.

He said modern society increasingly sought authentic and intimate human experiences amid the complexities of contemporary life.

“Eco-tourism is not merely a place for accommodation and rest,” Rabiei said. “It is a cultural and social institution for reviving local identity, reproducing indigenous traditions and strengthening the connection of Iranian society with its historical and cultural roots.”
The gathering was attended by hundreds of eco-lodge managers, tour guides, and ethic people and media personnel from across the country. 

AM