Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs Mohammad Reza Baqeri said the Islamic republic is studying a long-term presence in the African continent, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Wednesday.

Baqeri termed the trade links between Iran and African countries as expanding and “the ground is prepared for expansion of mutual ties”, adding that Africa enjoys rich resources and the continent is a suitable hub for Iranian-made commodities, the report said.
As for examples of current trade links with some African countries, he referred to the “construction of a tractor manufacturing plant in Uganda, dispatch of Iranian physicians to South Africa and establishment of an Iranian-made car (Samand) assembly line in Senegal.”
Iran’s visiting First Vice-President Parviz Davoudi said earlier in November in Algeria that Tehran-Algiers relations would enter a new stage, according to the official IRNA news agency.
Iran and Algeria have signed 40 agreements and held three joint economic commissions in a bid to increase cooperation since 2000 and the volume of bilateral trade reached 45 million U.S. dollars in the first eight months of 2008.
According to IRNA, Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in November last year that “Iran is ready to expand ties with all African states” and “the arrogant world today is frowned over cooperation between Iran and Africa.”
Source:Xinhua