TEHRAN – Sourena Sattari, the Iranian vice president for science and technology, and Abdul Zahir Shakib, the head of the Academy of Sciences of Afghanistan, discussed enhanced cooperation between the two neighboring countries through establishing a joint science and technology park, ISNA reported.

During a meeting held in Tehran on Wednesday, the two officials discussed signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop a joint innovation ecosystem and enhance cooperation and technological interaction.

The most important goal of the MOU is to develop scientific and technological cooperation, transfer experience and infrastructure, and provide development assistance in the field of science and technology, Sattari said.

Pointing to the creation of a joint innovation ecosystem between Iran and Afghanistan, Sattari said that “the successful models that were implemented in Iran's innovation ecosystem, based on a joint cooperation, can be generalized and developed in Afghanistan.”

Emphasizing the establishment of a joint science and technology park, he stated that there are 50 science and technology parks in the country that provides a platform to promote innovative and technological ideas.

Moreover, our successful model has paved the way for the prosperity of over 5,700 knowledge-based companies and thousands of innovative companies, he stated, highlighting that the cooperation between research institutes, knowledge-based and creative companies are other topics of technological cooperation between the two countries.

Referring to the increasing influence of the Persian language as an opportunity for technological development, he said that the Persian language is the ninth language of the Internet, which is significant considering the global population.

Moreover, Persian-language startups are among the best in the web platform, and this language can be a common ground for cooperation between the two countries for the prosperity of knowledge-based and creative companies, he noted.

Shakib, for his part, expressed readiness to use Iran’s scientific experience, noting that cooperation with the Iranian vice presidency for science and technology is valuable and we will continue to develop the interaction between the scientific centers.

Considering the common historical and cultural background between Iran and Afghanistan as a basis for scientific and technological cooperation, he said that “the two countries have deep and rich interaction in various fields and by using common language tools, we can establish scientific and technological relations between the two countries.”

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