MNA � Deputy Minister of Health and Medical Education for IT and Research Affairs Dr. Reza Malekzadeh said that Islamic Republic of Iran produces three percent of citations of articles in the world.

Iran accounts for one percent total population share in the world but it [Iran] produces two and three percent of articles and citations of articles in the world respectively, Dr. Malekzadeh maintained.

He made the above remarks in the inaugural ceremony of 24th Razi Medical Science Research Festival, held at Imam Javad (AS) Amphitheater of the Health Ministry, and added, �Iran has witnessed a considerable growth in production of articles qualitatively.�

He pointed to the number of leading universities and academic centers in the world in medial and nonmedical disciplines and said, �Iran is home to 29 top universities.�

He lashed out at the budget allocated to research activities in the country and added, �with the coordination made in this regard, it was expected that three percent of gross domestic product (GDP) would be earmarked to the production of science and technology but 0.3 percent of this rate has been materialized.�

Turning to the increasing number of scientific journals in the field of medical science, he said, �the number of medical journals hit from 13 to 412 in the current year, showing a considerable growth in this respect.�

Deputy Minister of Health for IT and Research Affairs pointed to the salient achievements of knowledge-based companies in the field of medical sciences and said, �presently, 100 knowledge-based companies are buy active in this field, offering necessary services in relevant field.�