Iran’s Vice Presidency of Science and Technology announced that the Iran House of Innovation and Technology (iHiT) will be established in Armenia.

The Vice-Presidency has set up IHIT offices in other countries some years ago to develop the global market for knowledge-based products of Iran.

The offices have been already launched in countries such as Russia, Turkey, China, Syria as well as Kenya.

Soon, Armenia and Iraq will host the offices to this end, the Vice-Presidency added.

Earlier, VP Sattari had expressed hope that the inauguration of the Iran House of Innovation and Technology (iHiT) would become a turning point in bilateral economic cooperation between Iran and Kenya in the East African region. / MNA/

Iranian visually-impaired judoka Meysam Bani Taba has won a gold medal at IBSA Judo World Grand Prix Kazakhstan.

The Iranian athlete achieved success by defeating his Turkish rival in the weight category of -60kg.

Over 200 judokas from 25 countries competed in the event held in Nur-Sultan.

After the Turkish Grand Prix in Ankara, this was the second competition according to the new IBSA rules, in terms of classification but also in weight categories./MNA/

Written and directed by Iranian filmmaker Zahra Mirzaei, ‘Settler’ has been screened and nominated for best short film in the official sections of 14 international film festivals.

The short film ‘Settler’ by Zahra Mirzaei, has been screened at the official sections of 14 cinematic events such as the International Halicarnassus Film Festival in Turkey, Digital Griffix Film Festival in Canada, Kelara Short Film Festival India, Lift-Off Global Session in the United Kingdom, Brazil New Visions Film Festival in Brazil, AltFF Alternative Film Festival in Canada, Five Continents International Film Festival in Venezuela, The Western Film FestivalColeman, Hilltop Film Festival of Diversity and Inclusion in the United States, Lift-Off Filmmaker sessionsPinewood Studios in the United Kingdom, GIFF Moscow in Russian Federation, AmiCorti International Film Festival in Italy, Pune Short Film Festival in India, and Ceylon International Film Festival in Los Angeles.

The 19-minute short film that was filmed in the US, touches on topics such as immigration, social obstacles, hard work, faith, and hope. It is in English and Spanish languages.

The ‘Settler’ follows the story of a Latino man named Juan, who has left his family behind and immigrated to the US in the hopes of a better life. While he’s working hard and is bent on building his future, he faces social and emotional struggles./ MNA/

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) said that $8.5 billion worth of non-oil goods was exported from the country in the first two months of the current year.

Alireza Moghaddasi made the remarks in a meeting of the Council of Dialogue between public and private sectors in West Azarbaijan province on Sunday and stated that $8.5 billion worth of non-oil goods were exported from the country from March 21 to May 22, showing a 37 percent hike as compared to the same period of last year.

He pointed to the high capabilities and potential of West Azarbaijan province in the export of products and added that $112 million worth of non-oil products were exported from this province in the first two months of the current year. /MNA/

Agricultural products of Golestan Province, northern Iran, are exported to 25 countries because of the fact that the products are organic, a member of the Iranian parliament said.

Head of the Agriculture, Water, Environment and Natural Resources Committee of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Javad Askari told IRNA that the agricultural sector of Golestan province has a good capacity for production, job creation, and revenue generation.

He noted that the province enjoys special capabilities and capacities in the production of agricultural, horticultural, poultry, and fishery products.

Golestan supplies nearly 50 percent of protein needed in Tehran Province, the MP said, adding that the northern province is planned to turn into a hub for producing agricultural products.

Members of the Agriculture, Water, Environment, and Natural Resources Commission of the Iranian Parliament have initiated a three-day visit to Golestan on Thursday to inspect agricultural projects in the northern province.

There are 214k farmers in Golestan, who produced 4.5 million tons of various agricultural products last year; this province accounted for five percent of the country’s total agricultural products in the mentioned year.

Golestan Province with two million inhabitants has an agricultural-oriented economy.

The northern province is surrounded by Turkmenistan in the north, Semnan Province in the south, North Khorasan Province in the east, and Mazandaran Province in the west borders. /T.T/

Iranian men’s team lost to Australia 56-50 in the final match of the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) Asia Oceania Championships on Saturday.

The bronze medal went to the Korea Republic, who bounced back from their semi-final loss to overcome hosts Thailand 68-50 in the third-place match.

Iran has already booked their place at the 2022 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship as one of the top four teams. The competition will be held in Dubai, the UAE from Nov. 16 to 27.

On Friday, Iran’s women’s team won a bronze medal in the competition above Thailand. Australia and Japan claimed gold and silver medals respectively.

The 2022 IWBF Asia Oceania Championships were held in Phuket, Thailand from May 20 to 28. /MNA/

The Islamic Republic of Iran Army unveiled two new drone achievements during the visit of the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Bagheri to an army-owned UAV secret base.

Major General Mohammad Bagheri visited an army-owned UAV secret base on Saturday. During his visit, the ‘Heidar-1’ cruise missile and ‘Heidar-2’ cruise UAV were unveiled by the Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

According to the announced information, the ‘Heidar-1’ cruise missile has a range of 200 kilometers and its speed at the moment of hitting the target is 1,000 km/h. It is the first cruise missile capable of firing from a drone. /MNA/

Iranian short film ‘Grape Season’ directed by Behrouz Khorram, won the best screenplay award at Hungary’s Mediawave Film Festival.

Co-penned by Elham Nami and Behrouz Khorram, the 29-minute short film was filmed in the UK in 2020 and depicts a peaceful narrative of the end of a romantic relationship.

“We have talked to each other before in Tehran. My mom and I have come here to have some alone time,” reads a brief synopsis of the film.

Elham Nami, Behrouz Khorram, and Amir-Ali Qanbari are the casts of the short film.

One of the main goals of the MEDIAWAVE International Film and Music Gathering is to promote independent films that have themed upon the central issues of human life. /MNA/

Latest statistics published by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) show that Iran currently stands among the world’s top producers of agricultural products, IRNA reported.

Based on the FAO data, the Islamic Republic is the third-largest producer of dates, honey, pistachios, and walnuts in the world.

Iranian farmers produce 1.28 million tons of dates annually, making the country the third-largest producer of this product in the world after Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Honey production in Iran is 80,000 tons per year, which is the highest honey production in a country after China and Turkey. China’s honey production is estimated at 458,000 tons per year.

The FAO has put Iran’s pistachio production at 190,000 tons in 2020, placing the country in third place among the world’s top producers of the mentioned products after the United States and Turkey.

Iran has been usually ranked first or second in the world in terms of pistachio production, but due to the drought in 2020, production fell sharply. The U.S. pistachio production this year was 474,000 tons.

The Islamic Republic is also ranked third in the world in the production of walnuts with 356,000 tons of annual output. China stands in first place with 1.1 million tons of production and the United States is in second place.

Iran is also ranked fourth in terms of almond and watermelon production. The country’s almond production is reported to be 164,000 tons per year. The United States is in first place with 2.37 million tons of almonds, followed by Spain and Australia in second and third places.

In terms of Kiwi output, the country is the world’s fifth major producer of the product with 289,000 tons per year. China, New Zealand, and Italy are the first to third-largest producers of kiwifruit in the world. China’s Kiwi production is 2.23 million tons per year.

Iran also ranks sixth in eggplant production, seventh in onion and tomato production, eighth in spinach output, ninth in terms of orange production, and 11th for grapes and sugar.

According to the FAO, Iran is the 12th largest producer of wheat in the world. The country’s wheat production in 2020 amounted to 15 million tons. China is the world’s largest producer of the strategic grain with 134 million tons, followed by India and Russia.

In the production of tea, Iran is ranked 12th as well with a production of more than 84,000 tons. China topped the list with 2.97 million tons of tea output, followed by India and Kenya.

The Islamic republic is also ranked 13th in barley production, 18th in terms of olive production, and finally 19th in the production of pears and tomatoes. /T.T/

 

Referring to Iran-Cuba’s successful cooperation in producing the Covid-19 vaccine, the Iranian health minister said that US illegal sanctions against Iran and Cuba led to the countries’ self-sufficiency.

The Iranian health minister Bahram Einollahi met and held talks with his Cuban counterpart José Angel Portal Miranda on the sidelines of the 75th edition of the World Health Assembly (WHA) held in Geneva.

Referring to the capacity of expanding cooperation in the field of medical and paramedical sciences between universities and research centers of Iran and Cuba, Einollahi stated that holding workshops and scientific conferences, as well as exchanging professors and students, will help promote the medical sciences of the two countries.

The Cuban minister, for his part, described Iran-Cuba relations as favorable and called on developing cooperation between the two countries.

Einollahi also met and held talks with his Qatari and Indian counterparts in Geneva. /MNA/