Life and Thought
Alinaghi Alikhani was an Iranian economist, policymaker, and university administrator. He served as Iran’s minister of economy from 1963 to 1969, played a role in shaping and implementing industrial policy during the 1960s, and later became chancellor of the University of Tehran.
Alinaghi Alikhani was born in Abhar, studied at the University of Tehran, and then went to France for further education, earning a doctorate in economics from the University of Paris. After returning to Iran, he worked for a time at the National Iranian Oil Company and entered government service in the early 1960s.
Alikhani served as Iran’s minister of economy from 1963 to 1969 under the governments of Asadollah Alam, Hassan Ali Mansur, and Amir-Abbas Hoveyda. His ministerial tenure is associated with the expansion of industrial policy, support for domestic manufacturing, the development of the private industrial sector, and a greater role for economic experts in public decision-making.
After leaving the Ministry of Economy, he served as chancellor of the University of Tehran from 1969 to 1971. Following the 1979 Revolution, Alikhani lived in the United States. His memoirs are an important source for understanding the workings of government, economic policymaking, and the political atmosphere of Iran under Mohammad Reza Shah.