Azerbaijan, Baku, August 5/ Trend M. Moezzi/
The head of Iran's Office of Population, Family and School Health said his office has prepared a national document on reproductive health and emphasized the need for a higher birth rate in the country.
Dr. Mohammad Esmail Motlagh told the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) that Iran's current fertility rate is 1.6 children per woman while a marriage should produce one child to replace the mother and one child to replace the father.
So, Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education proposes the fertility rate grow to about 3 children per woman and asks the public, families, and donors' help in solving this problem in order to safeguard society's health.
Today, the marriage age in Iran has climbed 7 to 10 years and is around 27 while the best age for women to give birth is from 20 to 35 years, said Dr. Motlagh who added that the sooner a child is born after marriage the better it is for both mother and child.
The Health Ministry official pointed to having single children as another unhealthy trend.
The document prepared by the Ministry is almost ready for evaluation by other agencies and the Health Ministry's High Council on Policymaking.
Over recent days Iran has announced it is scrapping its population control programs and moving in the opposite direction. The government will use funds previously allocated for population control to encourage bigger families as directed by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who cited a population of 150 million to 200 million as ideal.