Announcing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a historic agreement dissolving international sanctions against Iran has raised hopes for Iranians to restore their role in the global economy, which could lead to a significant change in the status of the national science, technology, and innovation system. This article discusses the changes in policy structure and the impacts of the sanctions on Iran’s scientific performance. We shall also examine the past intensive increasing trend and some recent drawbacks in science and technology outputs of Iran in terms of various scientometric and innovation-oriented indicators. We aim to show how the emerging opportunities can transform Iran’s economy into a knowledge-based economy and what challenges this country is facing to reach this goal.
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