Iranian president to visit several African nations by summer

Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi will visit several African countries in the first half of the current Iranian year.

The head of Africa Department at Iran's Foreign Ministry, Valiollah Mohammadi Nasrabadi, said in an interview with the ISNA news agency that presidents of several African countries have been also invited to visit Tehran.

He added that measures that have been taken to increase Iran's trade with the continent to more than $2 billion this year.

Unfortunately, one of our main obstacles in boosting trade with Africa is a lack of knowledge among both sides, Nasrabadi said. “Iranian businessmen do not know Africa well, and African traders do not know Iran well either.”

Iran's trade with Africa reached $1.2 billion in 11 months

Iran and African countries traded 2.46 million tons of goods worth $1.23 billion during the 11 months from the beginning of the last Iranian year (March 21, 2022-Feb. 19, 2023), new data shows.

Data released by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration show Iran exported 2.37 million tons of goods worth $1.15 billion to the African continent during the period.

South Africa was Iran’s main trade partner in the African continent during the period, with trade between two nations worth $317.57 million.

It was followed by Mozambique with $189.17 million and Ghana with $164.65 million.

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