Iran pioneers women’s health education, population control

Talking on the sidelines of ceremonies to present UN’s population award to Iranian demographer Dr. Mohammad Jalal Abbasi-Shavazi here on Thursday, Khazaie said Iran has had remarkable activities in population related issues, presenting suitable solutions in that domain.

The Iranian professor officially received the UN award during the meeting, that was organized in the UN Economic and Social Council Chambers on Thursday.

The Iranian academic was earlier announced as the winner of the UN award for his work on population and contributing to the improvement of people’s health.

Dr. Abbasi-Shavazi, who is a demographer, shared the UN annual award with the African research institution, L’Institut de Formation et de Recherche Demographique (IFORD).

He has been the head of the Division of Population Research at the University of Tehran since 2001 and his research is mainly focused on population and development, reproductive health and fertility, and immigration and refugees.

He has also been working as a professor, demographic researcher and advisor, and has contributed to the understanding of the dynamics of Iran’s fertility decline.

Prof. Abbasi-Shavazi’s studies showed that improving women’s education and status, and their access to reproductive healthcare have led to smaller family sizes in Iran.

The award-winning scholar got his PhD in Demography from the Australian National University and his efforts have promoted the view that social, economic and cultural differences among countries could better explain fertility differentials.

Dr. Abbasi-Shavazi has also connected international demographers and Iranian scholars to collaborate in studying the rapid Iranian fertility decline.