Iran: Pres Raisi tells parliament COVID is 'first priority' as debate begins on cabinet picks

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Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi told Iran’s parliament that fighting the coronavirus was his government’s ‘first priority’ in Tehran on Saturday, as the body began debating his cabinet picks.

“Accelerating public vaccination, implementing health protocols, and improving treatment levels are the first priorities the government is pursuing,” Raisi said.

“Domestic vaccine production is our priority. But at the same time as we increase the production of domestic vaccines, we also import vaccines from abroad,” he added.

The president continued saying that ‘next priority’ would be “the issue of the economy, economic stability.”

The former judiciary chief, whose cabinet picks are all male, also spoke about the role women will play in his new government: “We certainly believe in this role and believe that their significant capacity in education, their scientific capacity, and the influence by women, God willing, should be considered and used in various fields.”

Last week, Iranian lawmakers started debates on the credentials and backgrounds of 19 men on the list for Raisi’s cabinet, with the formal votes of confidence slated for next week.

SOUNDBITES:

SOT, Ebrahim Raisi, Iranian President (Farsi): “Our first priority in the government is to control the coronavirus and improve the health situation in the country. Accelerating public vaccination, implementing health protocols, and improving treatment levels are the first priorities the government is pursuing. The next priority is the issue of the economy, economic stability, improvement of macro indicators, and in a word, improvement of people’s livelihood, solving livelihood problems and strengthening the business environment.”

SOT, Ebrahim Raisi, Iranian President (Farsi): “Domestic vaccine production is our priority. But at the same time as we increase the production of domestic vaccines, we also import vaccines from abroad. We must implement and operationalize the issue of vaccination of the general public within a short period of time. This is possible.”

SOT, Ebrahim Raisi, Iranian President (Farsi): “And utilising the capacity of women, whose roles in the government and for the government can be effective, is something that we have not neglected and will not neglect. This issue will definitely be considered. And the use of the presence of women will not be limited to the ministers and will not be limited to the cabinet, but we will use this capacity everywhere in the country, as role-playing women, who have already played a role so far. We certainly believe in this role and believe that their significant capacity in education, their scientific capacity, and the influence by women, God willing, should be considered and used in various fields.”

#Iran #COVID19 #coronavirus

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