Rouhani urges Iranians to help tackle economic fallout from virus
President Hassan Rouhani has called on the Iranian nation to seriously participate in efforts aimed at resolving economic problems caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Speaking at a meeting of his administration's economic committee in Tehran on Sunday, Rouhani described people's cooperation as the most effective way to counter economic shocks.
"Now that Iran, like all other countries, is gripped by the economic repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, the problems ahead can be solved by people's serious participation," he said.
The nation, he added, is well aware that the country is grappling with the economic complications of the coronavirus at a time when it is subject to the harshest and most inhumane sanctions.
Rouhani also reiterated the government's resolve to protect the livelihood of people from any virus-induced damage.
"Although economic experts believe that the economic consequences of the coronavirus are more lasting and damaging than the virus itself, the government has attempted to protect the people and the economy from the complications by adopting special measures," he said.
The first priority of the government to deal with the economic impact of the coronavirus is to take care of the livelihood and economy of families, especially the low-income and less-privileged ones, Rouhani said.
Iran has been among the countries hit hard by the coronavirus that first showed up in China in late December 2019 before spreading across the globe.
Illegal US sanctions have hampered the virus battle in Iran, which reported its first COVID-19 infection cases in late February.
On Sunday, Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari reported 2,472 new coronavirus infections and 107 more deaths in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 187,427 and fatalities to 8,837.
She said 148,674 patients have recovered so far and been discharged from hospital.
Lari also said the situation in the provinces of West Azarbaijan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan, Kordestan, Kermanshah, Sistan and Bulachestan and Bushehr is red due to the higher number of infections.
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