Only 300,000 of Iran's Disabled Receive Monthly Benefits

The Deputy for Rehabilitation of Iran's Welfare Organization stated that out of 1.3 million disabled individuals in the country, only 340,000 receive a monthly pension, which ranges from 500,000 to 1 million rials. According to a report from the IRNA news agency on Thursday (February 10), Hossein Nahvij Nejad made these remarks during the inauguration of a daily educational and rehabilitation center for physically and motor-disabled individuals in Azadshahr, located in the eastern Golestan province. He noted that these 340,000 individuals receive pensions between 530,000 and 1 million rials. Nahvij Nejad described the situation for disabled individuals in Iran regarding pension support as inadequate, adding that '150,000 more disabled individuals are waiting to be covered.' As stated by the Deputy for Rehabilitation, 'only 10 percent of the needs of disabled individuals are included in the budget of the Welfare Organization, which has 152 responsibilities.' Nahvij Nejad also mentioned that the Welfare Organization pays 3 million rials monthly for each disabled person in daily rehabilitation centers and 6 million rials for those in residential rehabilitation centers. He further stated that in the sixth development plan, in coordination with the government and parliament, 'the pensions for disabled individuals will be increased up to three times by eliminating subsidies for high-income individuals.' The Deputy for Rehabilitation indicated that 25,000 to 30,000 disabled newborns are born in the country each year, with Golestan province having the highest number of disabled newborns due to consanguineous marriages. Previously, Anoushiravan Mohseni Bandpay, the head of the Welfare Organization, had stated that due to the non-mandatory nature of genetic testing in the country, 25,000 to 30,000 'disabled newborns' are born in Iran annually. Masoud Habibi, head of the Youth Organization of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, also mentioned that daily road accidents add 100 individuals to the number of disabled people across the country. In Iran, not only do disabled individuals face poor economic conditions and lack serious support from relevant organizations, but they also encounter difficulties in urban mobility due to inadequate sidewalks and challenges in using public transportation.