In the past three decades, the Islamic Republic of Iran has adopted a policy aimed at more strongly addressing the needs of its population, and substantial progress has been achieved both in the social and economic sectors. Since the revolution of 1979, a Primary Health Care network has been established throughout the country.
Iran has fairly good health indicators. More than 85 per cent of the population in rural and deprived regions, for instance, has access to primary health care services. The infant mortality rate is 28.6 per 1,000 live births; under-five mortality rate is 34 per 1,000 and maternal mortality rate is 25 per 100,000 live births.
The support of UNICEF contributed to Iran having achieved its “IDD free status”. Iodine Deficiency Disorders were prevalent in Iran before 1989 and less than 50 per cent of Iranian households in rural areas consumed iodized salt by 1994. A law for the mandatory production of iodized salt for households was passed in 1994. In a recent study conducted by the Endocrine Research Center and Institute of Nutrition, urinary iodine excretion was considered adequate in school children. Taking into account the percentage or Iranian households consuming iodized salt and the standards established by the IDD program, the Islamic Republic of Iran has reached a sustainable control program for iodine deficiency.
UNICEF Iran has developed a model for community-based nutrition involving Nutritional Counseling Centres. These centers provide training, facilities and educational materials for mothers, health workers, and volunteers. With the establishment of 160 additional Nutritional Counseling Centres in four districts of Sistan and Baluchestan, where malnutrition is a major problem, this initiative has exceeded all expectations. This is a result of the positive response by the Iranian government to UNICEF Iran’s pilot project, and the rapid expansion of the Nutritional Counseling Centres in 2006 was a significant step forward, reflecting an important success for UNICEF Iran’s programme.