Page 60 - IRANRptAug22

9.1.7 Healthcare sector news
Prices of essential drugs ‘quadruple in Iran amid move to cut major subsidy’
Prices of some essential drugs have reportedly more than quadrupled in Iran amid plans announced by the cash-strapped government to end a major subsidy.
Skyrocketing prices of pharmaceuticals were likely to surge further when the government officially withdraws the subsidy, a prospect that has triggered alarm and anger in Iran, RFE/RL reported.
In 2018, then-president Hassan Rouhani brought in the subsidy to provide billions in subsidised dollars for Iranian manufacturers to import shipments of essential food and medicine. The objective was to control prices even though the Iranian rial was severely depreciated in the wake of the US reinstating swingeing sanctions against Tehran. There is now anxiety that the ending of the subsidy will cause Iranian drug companies to hike prices.
"Medication is not something you can live without," a Tehran resident who did not want to be named told RFE/RL's Radio Farda. "Many people may not be able to afford medicine anymore. But they will be forced to buy them at any price just to save their lives."
Ending the subsidy would save the current Raisi administration around $9bn annually state media reported.
There is, meanwhile, confusion caused by contradictory statements from officials over whether the government has already cut the subsidy. Amid that confusion, prices have continued to ascend at a rapid rate.
US sanctions on Iran supposedly exclude food and medicine. But in reality, the restrictions have made it difficult for Tehran to purchase some drugs, according to Human Rights Watch.
9.1.8 Agricultural sector news
Gain of 20% y/y forecast for Iran’s annual rice production
Price of Iranian rice up 95% in a year says government statistical agency
Iranian farmers are expected to produce 2.2mn tonnes of rice this Persian calendar year (started March 21), marking a gain of 20% y/y, according to Deputy Agriculture Minister Alireza Mohajer, as cited by Tasnim News Agency.
“With this increase in production, more than 70% of the country's rice demand could be supplied by domestic farmers,” Mohajer was quoted as saying.
Iran imports significant volumes of the staple food from countries including India and Pakistan.
Officials estimate Iran’s annual rice demand at around 3mn tonnes.
More than 620,000 hectares of the country’s agricultural land are used for rice cultivation, with 520,000 hectares in the northern provinces of Mazandaran, Gilan and Golestan, which lie along the coast of the Caspian Sea.
Given Iran’s increasing difficulties with water scarcity, the government has come under fire for allowing the development of too many rice paddies in water-stressed localities.
Meanwhile, the price of Iranian rice has leapt by 95% in the past year, according to a report released by the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI).
The price per kilogram of Iranian rice in the 11th month of the Persian calendar year (ended February 20) also grew by around 20% m/m, the report added. One factor in the steep price hikes is drought, with the government having to step up imports of rice to counter disappointing Iranian rice harvests.
The Iranian rice price has reached Iranian rial (IRR) 760,000 (around $3 at the free market rate), according to the SCI. However, local reports indicate that the
60 IRAN Country Report August 2022 www.intellinews.com