Iranian Youth Population, A Golden Opportunity

Tehran, Oct 11, IRNA - Over half of Iran’ population below 30 years provide the country with a golden opportunity to achieve sustainable development, said Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations. Addressing the UN General Assembly, Hossein Dehqani added that youths could have significant and positive socioeconomic impacts on society. “A decline in youth population could gradually impede sustainable development,” he said. Population control policy has successfully been implemented in Iran in the past, but recently the government has decided to modify the policies to make the population more dynamic, he pointed out. Dehqani said Iran has been very successful in achieving the objectives set by the UN International Conference on Population and Development, including the Millennium Development Goals. “Reduction of infant and child mortality rates and improvement of medical services are among the most important achievements made by Iran in line with the Millennium Development Goals,” he said. He said a rise in the average age of global population will put a significant impact on the world economy, adding that the issue of poverty should be addressed properly worldwide. The Iranian representative to the UN stressed that governments should take more serious steps for fair distribution of wealth, calling for national and international social organizations to pay more attention to the issue. Dehqani said the “illegal and inhuman” Western sanctions imposed on the country have negatively affected national development. “Such sanctions have deprived Iranians from getting access to the required medicines and treatment services. The international community should strive to prevent the continuation of these inhuman practices,” he said.