According to the public relations sector of the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO, the Chair for Bioethics was hosted on July 13th, 2022, by the Tehran University research center of ethics and history of medical sciences with the presence of Dr. Hojatollah Ayoubi, Secretary-General of the National Commission, the deputy minister of science in international affairs Mr. Vahid Haddadi, faculties from the medical sciences department of Tehran University, and officials from both the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology and the Ministry of Health.
The UNESCO Chairs are national or regional bodies whose activities have to do with a particular scientific field. They can be established through either a new teaching or research unit in an institute of higher education or through strengthening already existing scientific research training programs. This UNESCO Chair of bioethics is the 18th UNESCO Chair Iran has in the broader field of biology.
Starting the ceremony, Dr. Bagher Larijani spoke of the history of the Chair, mentioning that its long-term goal has always been to communicate with similar Chairs in other countries. Dr. Ayoubi followed, expressing how satisfied he is with the establishment of this mentioned Chair after 2 years of effort. Furthermore, he emphasized how UNESCO’s goal of promoting education, science, and culture will not be as progressive unless ethics and human dignity are also promoted to the same extent.
While congratulating the launch of this new Chair, Dr. Haddadi discussed how important it has become to adhere to ethical standards as technology rapidly advances, both in medical practices and others, including engineering and the humanities. Mr. Hossein Ghanaeti and Mr. Mohammed Raiszadeh, the heads of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences and the Medical Council respectively, also provided their own insights during the ceremony.
At the end of the ceremony, the plaque of the new Bioethics Chair was unveiled.
It is important to note that this Chair can now operate at an international level for four years, with the goals of strengthening bioethics education and ensuring proper teaching for students, holding short-term bioethics educational courses (including training courses for bio-medical ethics instructors), and strengthening the access of universities and higher education centers to scientific resources and medical ethics research.
