Baku, Azerbaijan, May 13
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
Iran's medicine export will rise to $300 million in the current Iranian fiscal year, which began in March 21, said Abdorrasoul Dinarvand, the Iranian deputy health minister.
Last year, the country exported $185 million of medicine, he said, adding that medicine exports will surge to $500 million over the next three years, Iran's IRIB reported on May 13.
Last year, some $1 billion of medicine was imported, compared to $1.35 billion in fiscal year 1392 (March 2013-March 2014), he noted.
Iran plans to raise its exports of life-saving drugs to $1.5 billion in a decade's time, Iran's Health Minister Hassan Ghazizadeh Hashemi said in February.
"The truth is that pharmaceutical companies have taken great steps and now we should not limit ourselves to the domestic market," the minister added.
Iran has managed to produce some of the drugs whose imports have been restricted due to sanctions.