Javanrud, with its unparalleled potential in agriculture, fish farming, animal husbandry, and tourism, could be a turning point for change
A field report by a correspondent for Iranian Kurdistan Human Rights Watch in Kermanshah Province – May 2025
On May 2, 2025, Omid Sajedi, a correspondent for Iranian Kurdistan Human Rights Watch, undertook a field trip to the city of Javanrud in Kermanshah Province. The journey, passing through the lush and scenic route of Ravansar, and its captivating natural landscapes, once again highlighted the unique tourism potential of this region. However, what lies hidden beneath this beautiful nature is the depth of problems and oversights that have cast a shadow over the development of these areas. In reality, this region possesses abundant capacity for development and wealth creation, but due to the lack of a comprehensive development-oriented perspective and the neglect of border regions in Iran, we continue to witness poverty, unemployment, underdevelopment, a lack of sufficient infrastructure, and more.
In conversations with the hospitable and warm-hearted citizens of Javanrud, profound concerns were raised: from youth unemployment to the stagnation of the border market, from the lack of facilities in animal husbandry and agriculture to the neglect of small businesses and production workshops, from the absence of advanced communication infrastructure to the lack of major development projects in the Kurdish-populated regions of Iran. In a city that could have become a successful model for sustainable development by leveraging its local capacities, a different picture emerges: a border market whose unfinished metal skeleton has been forgotten in a corner for years; roads in need of reconstruction and upgrading; the deserted Sanandaj airport; the lack of a serious, economy-driven connection with the Kurdish region in Iraq; and young people who, due to poverty and lack of jobs, have resorted to selling illegal and sometimes dangerous goods.
Reports from Iranian Kurdistan Human Rights Watch indicate that recruitment into armed and extremist groups predominantly occurs among the deprived and socially vulnerable classes: teenagers with broken families, girls struggling with child marriage or addiction, and individuals who have been deprived of education and employment as a result of structural poverty. This bitter reality has a direct link to the underdevelopment of border regions. If border regions were involved in systematic, planned, and precise foreign trade, young people would not be unemployed and engaged in carrying goods across the border! Infrastructure development would occur, and sufficient employment would be created.
Javanrud, with its unparalleled potential in agriculture, fish farming, animal husbandry, and tourism, could be a turning point for change; however, realizing this requires a serious review of the economic, security, and social policies of the government and responsible institutions. Activating the border market, developing infrastructure, supporting local entrepreneurship, providing technical and vocational training for youth, and improving social welfare indicators can reduce the grounds for joining armed and violent groups. Iranian Kurdistan Human Rights Watch, while warning about the consequences of underdevelopment in the western border regions of the country, urges executive officials and national decision-makers to take serious steps with a responsible approach to revive the economic and human capacities of these regions. Only through equitable development can the roots of violence, extremism, and harmful migration be eradicated.
