TEHRAN – The Central bank of Iran has allocated at least 250 million euro to import medicine and medical equipment required to fight the novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, ISNA reported on Tuesday.

The number of people diagnosed with the novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, in Iran has increased to 16,169, of whom 988 have died and 5,389 recovered so far.

Over the past 24 hours, 1,178 new cases of people having the virus have been identified, Deputy Health Minister Kianoush Jahanpour said, ISNA reported.

The highest number of new cases were reported from the provinces of Tehran, Alborz, and East Azarbaijan with 273, 116, and 78 cases, respectively.

More than 40 consignments of medical and sanitary equipment have been dispatched by foreign countries and world organizations over the past month to Iran to help the country in battle against the coronavirus.

China has sent more than 30 consignments of pulse oximeters, test kits, face masks, antiseptic gels, alcohol pads, gloves, isolation gowns, and medicine since February 20, said Mehrdad Jamal Aronaqi, an official with the Iran Customs Administration.

Another consignment consisting of gowns and face masks has been delivered by France, IRNA quoted Aronaqi as saying on Sunday.

Moreover, four consignments by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and one consignment by the World Health Organization (WHO) have been released so far, he added.

The Iranian health ministry has announced that testing a domestically-made medicine has resulted in improvement of symptoms in severe cases of coronavirus.
An immunomodulatory drug called "Actemra" in patients with coronavirus in a hospital in Isfahan city has led to a partial improvement of the patient's symptoms in scans, Jahanpour said on March 11.

Richard Brennan, the Regional Emergency Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, has said countries in the region and all over the world should use Iran’s experience as a role model in fight against the novel coronavirus.

“Iran benefits from one of the strongest healthcare systems in the region. Iran has made notable achievements in the field of battling coronavirus,” the WHO official said in a press conference in Tehran on March 7, IRNA reported.

MG