TEHRAN – Iranian and Armenian officials have agreed to accelerate the implementation of joint projects in the health sector, particularly the registration of food, medicine, and medical equipment.

At a meeting held in Tehran on Thursday between an Armenian delegation and Iranian officials, including representatives from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the two sides announced their readiness to promote cooperation, benefiting from the capacities of both governmental and private sectors, despite the presence of sanctions.

During the meeting, Hamidreza Inanlou, an official with the FDA, elaborated on Iran’s supervisory and regulatory system for food, medicine, medical devices, and health-related products, so that the Armenian side become familiar with the centralized supervision of medicines, medical equipment, and health-related products, as well as decentralized supervision of food, cosmetics, and health products through the FDA of medical sciences universities, Mehr news agency reported.

The intelligent tracking, tracing, and authentication system has been introduced as one of the main tools for transparency in supplying food, medicine, and medical equipment; the system monitors all products from raw materials to final delivery, the official noted.

Referring to the capabilities of the country in manufacturing medical items, the official said Iran is self-sufficient in producing vaccines and biotechnological medicines, meeting the needs of both domestic and regional markets.

The Armenian delegation is supposed to submit a list of basic goods needed for children with hard-to-treat illnesses, like medicines, medical devices, and other health products, and the high-quality Iranian-made generic medicines will be introduced and assessed to replace those made by other countries.

Cooperation in medicine, medical equipment

In October 2024, the former head of the FDA, Heidar Mohammadi, and the Armenian deputy health minister Artak Jumayan held a meeting in Tehran to strengthen interactions, IRNA reported. The two sides exchanged their lists of essential medicines and medical equipment.

The Armenian Ministry of Health agreed to facilitate Iran’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union and streamline the process for registering Iranian medicine and medical equipment.

In February 2024, Lena Nanushyan, an official with the Armenian ministry of health, announced her country’s willingness to import Iranian medicine and medical equipment.

Talking about the remarkable achievements of Iran in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak by adopting appropriate measures, she said that Iran’s progress in the field of health is significant, ISNA reported.

She made the remarks in a meeting with Mohammadi, on the sidelines of the 18th session of the Iran-Armenia Joint Economic Committee that was held in Tehran during February 14-15.

At the end of the meeting, the two sides signed 19 documents and memorandums of understanding (MOUs) to enhance cooperation in various areas.

The mentioned documents covered a variety of areas, including trade, maritime transportation, food, medicine, and customs cooperation.

Noting that Iranian pharmaceutical products are famous worldwide, she said that Armenia has yet to import the products, she added.

Referring to the quality of anti-cancer drugs manufactured in Iran, she said, “We are interested in using Iranian oncology drugs in Armenia, and it is also possible to supply part of the required drugs of the country from Iranian manufacturing companies.”

Nanushyan went on to say, “We are happy to sign an agreement to expand cooperation between the two countries in the field of medicine and medical equipment.”

She further noted that once Iranian medicines are registered in Eurasia, it will be much easier to import medicines from Iran.

Nanushyan also voiced the country’s readiness to hold an exhibition of Iranian-made medical products in Armenia.

MT/MG