The Iranian government is to offer life insurance to another 1 million villagers, says a top official, amid efforts to expand social security services to cover more people in the country.

Ali Aghamohammadi, who serves as the economic advisor to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said on Wednesday that the number of villagers covered by life insurance services in Iran will reach 3.5 million in the upcoming years.

Aghamohammadi said expanding the coverage of life insurance to people living in the countryside would be a major achievement in Iran’s efforts to tackle poverty.

“We should encourage officials to expand the insurance coverage for the villagers,” he said, adding that Iran will seek to offer life insurance to the entire rural population in the country.

Aghamohammadi made the comments at a gathering of provincial chiefs of Iran’s Social Insurance Fund for Farmers, Villagers and Nomads.

The Fund, established just less than a decade ago, has sought to offer social security services to rural households which account for nearly 20% of Iran’s population of over 84 million people.

Iranian villagers currently receive health insurance services from other funds and organizations in the country.

Government officials have not provided any estimate about the financial costs of the plan to offer life insurance to 1 million villagers.

However, the current administrative government led by President Ebrahim Raisi has reiterated that it will be serious in pursuing its campaign pledges of spreading social and economic justice in Iran.

 

 

By PRESS TV