Iran's state TV has reported that the country has appointed its first foreign ministry spokeswoman.

The Thursday report quotes Mohammad Javad Zarif, the foreign minister, as saying Marzieh Afkham has been appointed spokesperson for the country's diplomatic apparatus.

Afkham has been working in the ministry for nearly 30 years and was head of its public relations department under the former reformist president, Mohammad Khatami.

After the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran appointed a female charge d'affaires in Japan, Mansoureh Sharifisadr. In the mid-1970s, the west-backed Shah's government appointed Mehrangiz Dolatshahi as its first female ambassador to Denmark.

President Hasan Rouhani has promised more opportunities for women. Last week, he appointed another woman, Elham Aminzadeh, as vice-president in charge of legal affairs.