Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Monday began a tour of African nations at the head of a delegation as part of the government’s efforts to expand ties with Africa.
The top diplomat is scheduled to visit the Western African nation of Mali, the Eastern African state of Tanzania and Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous region of Tanzania, to discuss bilateral ties, ISNA reported.
Business leaders from the private sector accompany Amir-Abdollahian on his trip.
The visit is in line with the government’s policy of strengthening ties with Africa to expand the country’s presence on the international scene.
Amir-Abdollahian’s trip to his first destination is a response to his Malian counterpart Abdoulaye Diop’s visit to Tehran back in mid-February.
The top official will participate in a comprehensive cooperation commission as well as an economic forum in Bamako to discuss ways to bolster relations.
Trade between Iran and African countries doubled over the past year from $600 million to more than $1.3 billion, with Tehran hoping to further increase trade.
Amir-Abdollahian is also expected on the official invitation of Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Liberata Mulamula to meet politicians and trade officials and inaugurate a joint economic symposium in the Eastern African country.
His African visit will end in Zanzibar.
More Exports
Iran is planning to continue to promote trade with African nations, setting the goal of reaching $2.4 million in exports by 2023 and five to six million dollars by 2025.
A prerequisite to reaching that goal is to develop trade-related infrastructure, head of the Iran Trade Organization, Alireza Peymanpak, said on state television a while back.
According to him, Iran needed to prioritize establishing shipping lines and ways to transfer money to ensure more bilateral trade.
Last month, a trade delegation of 50 made a trip to Tehran to participate in the first Iran-Mauritius business forum attended by representatives from the private sector and senior officials.
In the past year, envoys from Nigeria, Ghana, the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Cameroon and several other African nations have made visits to Iran.
Over the next few months, Iran is set to attend joint commissions with Senegal and South Africa and President Ebrahim Raisi is slated to visit a number of African countries, including South Africa, in November.
In the past few years, many countries around the world have looked to the untapped potential of the African continent and are seeking to cement ties and make investments in the region.
