TEHRAN – Iranian Health Minister Bahram Einollahi and Syrian Prime Minister Hussein Arnous discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation in the fields of health tourism and pharmaceuticals.

In a meeting on Monday, Einollahi welcomed the exchange of medical services and equipment by the two countries, referring to the memorandum of understanding signed in various fields.

He called for the elimination of bureaucratic barriers to the activities of doctors and the exchange of medicines, referring to the provision of education for students of the two countries.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Einollahi announced his readiness to hold a joint congress of Iranian and Syrian medical sciences. “As U.S. sanctions continued, the difficulty of COVID-19 control increased, however, we strived to handle it.”

Arnous, for his part, said that there is a need to increase the exchange of medical research, especially now that there is ample opportunity for collaboration.

A total of 227 knowledge-based firms are supplying medical equipment for health centers across the country.

He further emphasized that Syria would support any agreement between the two countries to promote health.

Sanctions for countries bring more solidarity and we must stay together, he further noted.

Rise in pharmaceuticals, medical productions

The import of pharmaceuticals has declined in Iran by 91 percent, which shows the capability of the country’s pharmaceutical industry, Mohammad Reza Shanehsaz, former head of the Food and Drug Administration, said last October.

Today, all medicine used in the treatment of coronavirus are produced by domestic manufacturers, and if we wanted to import all the items, there would be a high exchange rate, he further stated, emphasizing that COVID-19 vaccine development indicates the pharmaceutical industry’s capability.

In 2018, 67 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) used to produce drugs in Iran were made locally.

A total of 227 knowledge-based firms are supplying medical equipment for health centers across the country, according to the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology.

Knowledge-based companies can produce any medicine effective in countering coronavirus or approved by the scientific committee within a week to 10 days, Sourena Sattari, vice president for science and technology, said.

In January 2021, the Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam unveiled three raw pharmaceuticals and a new anti-coronavirus drug called Ivermectin, which had been previously imported.

Also, Iran is capable of production of biopharmaceuticals, which has so far reached 28 items, making Iran the third leading country in Asia.

FB/MG