[86900] Criticism in Iran: Internet restrictions harm the country's academic and scientific standing
[86900] Criticism in Iran: Internet restrictions harm the country's academic and scientific standing
A senior official in the Iranian Ministry of Health warns that restrictions on network access are causing a decline in Iran's scientific ranking and threatening the output of academic research.
The struggle for academic freedom: Concern over a decline in Iran's scientific ranking
A storm among the academic community in Iran following the statements of the Deputy Minister of Health for Research and Technology, who sharply criticizes the impact of internet restrictions on scientific research in the country. According to reports on the Telegram channels יِ دانش آموز and اخبارفوری خبرفوری جنگ امریکا فوری, the official claims that without the existing restrictions, Iran could have reached a higher ranking in international indices.
According to the Deputy Minister of Health as published in יِ دانش آموز, "If the internet of our lecturers and researchers had not been disconnected, the country's scientific ranking could have been around 16 instead of 18," and he even added that Iran would have been able to surpass Saudi Arabia in this field.
The reports in اخبارفوری خبرفوری جنگ امریکا فوری and اخبارفوری خبرفوری جنگ امریکا حمله emphasize the practical consequences of the situation, noting that we may see "a decline of 10,000 articles in 2026" and a possible deterioration of Iran to 20th place in the world. The reporting sources, which are usually identified with general and security news content, point to operational difficulty in uploading local academic journals with international indices to the network as a central factor for scientific delay.
The criticism joins ongoing discussions in Iran regarding "internet filtering" and its impact on the technological and educational sectors in the country, as representatives of the scientific establishment try to emphasize the long-term damage to national prestige.