Based on the latest statistical information obtained from the 1390 census, the Ministry of Health announced that “the overall fertility rate has reached 1.8 and it is necessary to increase it to at least 2.1 in order to prevent negative population growth, by creating various facilities and with the shortest possible time interval.” The installation of large billboards in the city of Tehran, prevention of condom imports as a luxury and non-essential item, and the production and distribution of programs that have recently been more seriously pursued by state media, all indicate that a population growth policy is being pursued; while the Islamic Consultative Assembly has also recently approved a plan to punish abortion, vasectomy, and promoting having fewer children. The plan to increase the fertility rate and prevent population decline has four articles, the first of which prohibits all actions related to abortion, sterilization such as vasectomy, tubectomy, and any advertising related to limiting births and reducing fertility, and anyone who commits such acts will be

Despite the fact that family planning programs have been present for more than half a century at a global level, and that today approximately 85% of developed countries and nearly 95% of their populations support family planning services, unfortunately only half of women in developing countries have access to this knowledge. According to experts in the field of healthcare, family planning and population programs are not limited to controlling fertility in women, but also include important aspects such as health, social, economic, legal, psychological, and more. One of the goals of family planning programs is to empower families to make informed and responsible decisions about the number and spacing of their children. Increasing awareness in society about the impact of unintended and risky pregnancies on the health of mothers and children leads to improved family and ultimately societal health.

In this issue of the monthly magazine “Khat-e-Solh”, we have gone to Akbar Ranjbarzadeh, former representative of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, to inquire about the amount of health share in the government budget and the reasons for population growth policies from his perspective as an official.

The second vice-president of the Health and Treatment Commission in the eighth parliament, in an interview with the peace line, while emphasizing that the policy of increasing the population, with the leadership of the Islamic Republic system, has been placed on the agenda of all institutions for the increase of the Muslim population, believes that those who act against these policies should be pursued…

Mr. Ranjbarzadeh, as the first question and considering your previous presence in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, please explain how much of the government’s budget is allocated to healthcare and to what extent do officials prioritize the issue of healthcare and treatment in the country?

The budget amount, for example in the year 92, was around 13 trillion and 200 billion tomans. There is a law that was included in the Fifth Development Plan, which states that 10% of the resources from targeted subsidies should be allocated to the Ministry of Health and Medical Education for the purpose of health. Naturally, the Ministry of Health and Medical Education prioritizes health first and then treatment; this itself shows the importance of the matter. The Ministry of Health and Medical Education is striving to distribute these resources fairly and achieve the satisfaction of the whole society. Fortunately, the esteemed Leader has also given priority to health this year and both the government and the parliament have paid serious attention to health. We hope that with good management from the responsible officials of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, we will see a decrease in people’s concerns about health and medical matters and the burden on people’s pockets will decrease. We hope to see a reversal of the current situation, where we have

Do you think this budget allocation is sufficient for healthcare?

The reality is that the health of society is facing challenges and fundamental problems that require a collective effort and determination from those involved in the field of health. We cannot simply say that financial resources can cover all the problems. We must plan for how to manage these resources, distribute them fairly, and prioritize them for health. These are issues that, with the same financial resources, can be effectively addressed. To reduce concerns, both doctors and all those involved in health matters must work together. They must help to reduce the burden on people’s pockets and ensure that the necessary facilities, equipment, and human resources are available and accessible to the public. Therefore, we cannot say that the problems will be minimized with the same resources, but if all those responsible for health matters work hand in hand, plan and manage, it is hoped that these resources will, God willing, solve a significant portion of society’s problems.

Last year in Esfand, the Minister of Health announced a budget deficit of 6 trillion tomans from the previous government. What is the government’s plan and the Parliament’s Health Commission’s plan in this regard?

I have no information about the extent of the government’s budget deficit; this is a figure that the Minister of Health has announced. We have seen such things before, and we have had budget deficits in the past, 2 trillion, 3 trillion, more or less. In fact, the country and the government’s priority among different ministries was not health. But this year, with the emphasis of the Supreme Leader on the issue of health, special attention has been paid to health. In total, if that budget deficit has been transferred, well, it will consume a huge portion of the credits and naturally, it is possible to minimize the problems in this year and therefore we must wait for the coming years.

The head of the parliament requested the head of the budget reconciliation commission to address the issue of ambiguity in the health budget. What were the ambiguities and what actions have been taken in this regard so far?

The same recommendation and emphasis of the head of the parliament to the head of the reconciliation commission of the parliament is in line with the emphasis of the esteemed leader that they should pay special attention to the health and make it a priority in the national budget of the country. The parliament has responded to this and in my opinion, they have allocated the necessary budget for health, but we must also make up for the budget deficit. We must also manage the other part so that it does not lead to paying from the people’s pockets or unnecessary and uncontrolled expenses in the private sector. In other words, we must strengthen the government sector. If these funds are spent towards the private sector, in my opinion, the problems will still remain. No matter how much budget we inject, the problems will still remain. Therefore, government hospitals and primary health care services in these institutions must be strengthened and the Ministry of Health and Medical Education must provide satisfactory services so that people can trust them and also be less affected by

“Health protector (condom) has been banned from being imported into the country since November 2012, as one of the “non-essential and luxury” goods, with the approval of the previous government. What is the current government’s policy in this regard and why is such a product considered non-essential?”

See, the main policies of the system, approved by the parliament and decisions of the government, are focused on implementing population growth policies. Therefore, all those who are present in executive institutions must act in accordance with the relevant laws and policies, and those who are in opposition or act against these policies, in my opinion, are acting against the interests of the society and should be pursued and monitored more closely by the Ministry of Health. In any case, it is the duty of the Ministry of Health and a portion of the proposed government budget, which I believe was 600 billion tomans, has been allocated to population policies and monitoring and control in this regard, which can be of great importance.

So do you think this product is unnecessary? While some people believe that the quality of Iranian hygiene products is not as good as foreign ones and is not reliable, the reality is that they are either not available in the market or are sold at exorbitant prices. What is your explanation for this?

See, we are being sanctioned by so-called cowardly countries, so we must pay more attention to domestic goods. Every Iranian who has Iranian dignity in them, as much as possible, must use Iranian facilities, equipment, and goods that are consumable. Therefore, all those involved and supervisors must either take more serious action and have a greater presence, or not allow the entry of foreign version goods. In my belief, these are at least actions that every Iranian must take and that government officials must pay attention to.

The ban is in line with population growth policies and in any case, domestic production is available to the extent necessary. Therefore, importing this product is not necessary; of course, the fact that its quality is not like foreign goods is another issue that should be considered. Keep in mind that pursuing specific methods to reduce the population is considered contrary to these policies.

You stated that these actions are being taken in line with the policy of increasing the population. In your opinion, why do officials primarily focus on persuading citizens to have children?

In the end, we must accept that we are Muslims and have a duty to follow the teachings of Islam in order to increase the Muslim population. Birth and population policies should also be culturally promoted and other ways must be found to strengthen the cultural foundation for population policies. Media outlets, various media, newspapers, and all media owners and those who have a platform must also contribute to this cause.

The reality is that for a while, the issue of population growth had become a problem and was considered a negative point in people’s lives. But we must break this cycle. We must follow ways to encourage people with children and support them, both as individuals and as a society, and as responsible officials. Therefore, those in charge of health must consider themselves responsible. When I was in parliament discussing the budget bill, we were trying to allocate a portion of the budget to universities and educators. Why? We wanted to mobilize all teachers to see the necessary and sufficient education to encourage and promote population growth.

But this did not happen. As I mentioned, cultural awareness is very, very important and both the government and all executive bodies must support the policy of increasing the population, obey the orders of the Supreme Leader and take action in the field. Those who move in this path should eventually see its reward and create a sense of security for increasing their children. In my opinion, it is suggested that a part of computer targeting be allocated to securing the future of those whose number of children is more than two; that is, an executive guarantee for providing housing, marriage, and various other issues. There should be incentive ways for people to take steps in this path. These are ultimately other issues that can be addressed in the parliament.

You almost answered my next question; I wanted to ask, will families who have economic problems face difficulties in this population increase policy and not only, for example, is health protection not a luxury item for them, but it plays a vital role…

Yes, the government and parliament should allocate a portion of the subsidies for providing housing for families with more than two children, for example, to ensure their continued livelihood. This should be done at an average level, until they reach the age of employment and can earn their own income. This is necessary for the country. The lack of population growth has been a major problem for the country and fortunately, we have now woken up from this neglect and the policy of increasing the Muslim population is on the agenda. God provides sustenance, but government and parliament planning is also necessary. They should allocate a portion of God’s given resources to address the concerns of families with more children.

Do you have statistics on the number of AIDS patients in Iran? And what is your opinion on the impact of banning the import of sanitary products on the spread of this disease?

For this issue as well, cultural recommendation seems to be one of the solutions in my opinion. Cultural awareness and necessary education should be at a national level. The work that is currently being done is sporadic and not widespread enough. In my opinion, it should be much more widespread; this is about cultural awareness. However, there should also be some minimums for high-risk individuals. For example, we say that for heroin addicts, it is appropriate to have access to methadone and other medications to avoid the harms, such as injection sites and other issues that can transmit HIV. Now, for this high-risk sexual group, there should also be some [health protection] available to them, but it should not harm the population growth policy.

One last question; Mr. Ranjbarzadeh recently passed a bill in parliament that bans vasectomy in Iran. If it is approved in the open session of parliament, those who perform abortion, vasectomy, and any kind of promotion of limiting births and reducing children will be punished. What are your thoughts on this matter?

I do not agree with vasectomy, it is something that can be done, but the more important issue is abortion, which unfortunately we also have now. We see people who change their minds with personal guidance. Counseling centers should be established; a counseling center for population growth for fathers and mothers. A few days ago, a father called me and said he was worried. I want to abort our child. I asked why? I asked for a telephone explanation from him. He was a little worried that his child might be defective because he was sick himself. Finally, with the explanations I gave him, he was convinced to keep his child and not to enter this danger and this great sin. Therefore, with the establishment of counseling centers, doctors should be obliged and obligated to refer cases of abortion to counseling centers.

It is possible that some may resort to such actions due to economic issues. They should be supported by the authorities of each province and guided to counseling centers, where they can be provided with economic security and receive free medical treatment. Therefore, the concerns of those who may consider such actions due to their problems and difficulties can easily be addressed. With guidance and counseling, and minimal support, thousands of people, or even more, can be dissuaded from pursuing abortion. Abortion rates in Iran are very high and this issue requires more planning. Vasectomy is something that must be done and should be dealt with separately. But more importantly, there should be planning for the issue of abortion and they can be successful here. They can establish places, have a room, provide guidance, and support, and say that if you want to have an abortion, you will be supported until this stage. They may need medical support, such as ultrasound and free deliveries. Making all of these available to them, in

Thank you for giving us your time.