Iran Eyeing to Tap into Region’s IT Market

“What we are looking to is creating a bigger market with the aim of IT and propping up startups in the region with the youth at the center of attention,” said Iran’s Communication and Information Technology Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi while visiting the 24th Azerbaijan International Bakutel-2018 Exhibition in the capital city of Republic of Azerbaijan, Baku.

According to the idea, a series of intensive talks were held at the ministerial level over the past six or seven months at various regional forums including those in Ashgabat and Dubai, he said.

Fourteen Iranian companies, the minister said, are participating in Bakutel-2018, which would link the companies to regional markets as well as Azerbaijani.

Amir-Kabir satellite which is ready to be launched was introduced at the expo, Azari Jahromi said.

He noted that two main issues that will be promoted during the visit are experience sharing with Azerbaijani academic centers, and jointly developing a remote-sensing satellite.

The 24th edition of Azerbaijan International Telecommunications, Innovations and High Technologies Exhibition and Conference “Bakutel-2018” opened on Tuesday at Baku Expo Center, and will be open till December 7.

On Saturday, Iranian Vice-President for Science and Technology Sorena Sattari announced that Iran stands atop the nations of the region in the production of science and technology. 

"Now, Iran ranks first in the region in science and technology," Sattari said, addressing a forum on stem cells in Tehran.

He also referred to Iran's huge progress in the field of stem cells, and said that the country has been able to take over Turkey and Israel in this field.

Sattari underscored that Iran's progress in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine has opened a door to the development of knowledge-based economy.

Iran has made huge progress in different sciences and technologies in recent years.

In relevant remarks in June, Sattari underlined that Iran's international ranking in science production had risen from 34th to 16th.

"Iran ranks first in West Asia in terms of science output with the number of its college students rising to 4.8 million from 2.4 million," Sattari said, addressing the second Iran-Europe Cooperation Conference in Brussels, Belgium.

He reiterated that Iran had made great progress in the fields of biotechnology, renewable energy, nanotechnology and stem cells.

Sattari said that there were 47 million internet users in Iran who constitute nearly half of the total Internet users in the Middle East, and added, "Iran ranks first in the Middle East for production of biological drugs."

He said that Iran had one of the most successful biotech companies with young and skilled staff aged 33 on the average which exported biological drugs to 10 countries, Sattari said.

Of 39 technology parks existing in Iran, Paris Park is one of the largest in West Asia which houses 200 companies and some of them export advanced technological products, he added.