TEHRAN –Health Minister, Mohammad-Reza Zafarqandi, and Japanese Ambassador to Iran, Tamaki Tsukada, in a meeting in Tehran on Sunday, discussed ways to boost cooperation in the field of health.

Referring to the health minister’s successful experience in handling Covid-19 outbreak, Tsukada said  Iran can share its expertise and scientific achievements in the field with Japan and help transfer the knowledge to future generations, the health ministry’s website reported.

Tsukada went on to say that despite sanctions a number of Japanese companies are ready to develop cooperation in the field of health with Iran. The official stated that Japan wants  Iran to speed up the approval process for Japanese medical equipment to enter the country. 

“Currently, Japan is funding projects to improve the healthcare system with advanced medical tools”, he noted.

“Japan has substantial experience in preventing diseases (like breast cancer),  reducing their prevalence as well as minimizing the costs of treatments. Japan is willing to share these experiences with Iran,” he stressed.

The health minister, for his part, welcomed Japan’s proposal for sharing achievements and scientific knowledge on Coronavirus and other diseases, highlighting that in case new epidemics emerge in the world, shared knowledge and experiences can be greatly useful.

The official suggested establishing a working group to follow up on transferring knowledge in the field of screening and treating diseases like breast cancer and esophageal cancer, which are prevalent in Iran and Japan, respectively.

Zafarqandi lauded the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for donating 50 mammography systems to Imam Hossein (AS) and Arash hospitals in Tehran.

He highlighted the enhancement of cooperation between the two countries in the health sector and called for expanding the exchange of medical equipment, as well. 

Japan, WHO support Iran

In October 2021, the Government of Japan signed a financial donation agreement with the World Health Organization (WHO) to support the consolidation of national efforts to respond to the COVID-19 emergency across Iran.

The agreement was signed between Syed Jaffar Hussain, WHO Representative and Head of Mission to Iran, and Hirotaka Matsuo, Charge d'Affaires ad interim in Japan to the Islamic Republic, during a ceremony in Tehran.

The grant aid project worth $6.3 million aimed to provide a total of six MRI machines to Iran to strengthen its capacity to address the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in the country. These MRI machines were projected to be delivered to public hospitals in five provinces of Tehran, Khuzestan, South Khorasan, North Khorasan, and Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari, by WHO Country Office.

“The 6.3-million-dollar grant will greatly facilitate the effective response of the government of Iran to COVID-19, particularly in the diagnostic and therapeutic aspect. The MRI machines will not only serve the COVID-19 response but at the same time for a medium-to-long-term to many other illnesses and diseases, which currently are of very important nature,” Hussain said.

In June 2023, WHO delivered the first 3 MRI machines as a part of a project funded by the Government of Japan aimed at strengthening the diagnostic capacity of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s health system.

The state-of-the-art 1.5-Tesla MRI scanners were projected to be installed in hospitals identified by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, according to the WHO website.

A total of 6 MRI machines were delivered through the implementation of this project. The first 3 machines arrived at target hospitals, namely, Kosar Hospital in Semnan, Hajar Hospital in Shahrekord, and Pasteur Hospital in Bam.

Two other machines, destined for 12 Farvardin Hospital in Kahnooj and Imam Ali Hospital of Andimeshk.

MT/MG