Iran and Iraq to cooperate on developing medical tourism

Pars Today – Iran’s Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts has stressed the need to establish integrated governance in medical tourism and expand tourism cooperation between Iran and Iraq.

According to Pars Today, citing IRIB, the Iranian minister discussed ways to develop tourism cooperation between Iran and Iraq, identifying medical tourism as one of the key areas of cooperation between the two countries.

Salehi-Amiri said efforts had been made over the past two years to coordinate the relevant agencies, and that, following the emergence of inter-agency consensus within the Iranian government, a comprehensive medical tourism system would soon be launched.

According to Salehi-Amiri, the system will manage the journey of medical tourists from origin to destination and, through coordination among relevant agencies, help reduce intermediaries, increase transparency, improve service quality, and establish an integrated and monitorable system.

The meeting also proposed establishing a joint and permanent mechanism between Iran and Iraq. Experts said that creating an Iran-Iraq Supreme Tourism Council, establishing a joint specialized working group, and setting up a joint office could move cooperation beyond dialogue toward implementation, follow-up on decisions, and regular evaluation.

The capacities, challenges, obstacles, and solutions for developing tourism between the two countries are expected to be compiled into a comprehensive document and, following expert review, presented in bilateral talks with the Iraqi side.