President Hassan Rouhani chided his political opponents for failing to recognize his government's achievements, citing the return of stability to a highly volatile domestic market, among other things.
Pointing to the stability in various economic sectors, including the share, forex and gold markets, Rouhani said, "We should appreciate the current calm in the economic and financial sectors."
"We pulled off an unprecedented feat by cutting the point-to-point inflation from 45% three years ago to below 8%," Rouhani was quoted by his official website as telling a conference to mark Government Week (Aug. 23-29) on Monday.
He highlighted the merits of a national initiative known as the Health Reform Program undertaken on his watch, which he said has proved effective in significantly reducing the cost of medical treatment.
"Since its implementation, 16.3 million individuals used the services rendered under the plan, which in essence means all the Iranian families."
The health program initiated by the Rouhani administration is aimed at lowering the cost of treatment, improving the quality of services in public hospitals and offering physicians better incentives to work in disadvantaged and remote rural regions.
Promoting natural childbirth and providing financial support to poor patients and those diagnosed with virulent and special diseases are also among the goals of the initiative.
Rouhani called for new and effective measures to ease cumbersome rules, reduce he bloated bureaucracy and cut red tape. "The satisfaction and approval of the people should be met by improving the administrative system."
