This is good cultural news, said the Director General of Interior Ministry's Bureau for Aliens and Foreign Immigrants (BAFIA) Ahmad Mohammadifar, Press TV reported.
"In accordance with a directive by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, we are witnessing advances in the field of education for foreign nationals in Iran and there is no obstacle to the education of refugees," he added.
He said BAFIA, in cooperation with non-governmental organizations, seeks to identify the children who have been deprived of education.
Mohammadifar further noted that effective measures have been taken on health insurance for the refugees.
Meanwhile, Samad Haj Jabbari, the director general for non-Iranian university students at the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, also said that 4,000 foreign students are currently studying in Iranian universities.
Noting that the figure included 19,000 Afghans, the official added that the number of foreign students in the country is expected to rise to 75,000.
The official said Iran attaches great significance to the education of Afghan refugees.
In a meeting with the Chief Executive of Afghanistan, Abdullah Abdullah, in January 2016, Ayatollah Khamenei ordered that all Afghan children in Iran be permitted schooling irrespective of their residency status.
Iran has been hosting large numbers of Afghan refugees, who have fled war and conflicts in their country. In recent years, Tehran has been urging the Afghan nationals to return home voluntarily and contribute to the reconstruction of their homeland.
More than 350,000 Afghan refugee children are now attending schools in Iran, while some 48,000 undocumented Afghan children were allowed last year to enroll for the first time in Iranian public schools.
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