TEHRAN - The value of Iran’s exports to its African and Arab trade partners increased by $2.6 billion or 20 percent in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), Farzad Piltan, director-general of Trade Promotion Organization (TPO)’s Office of Arabian and African Countries, said.

According to Piltan, Iranian exports to Arab and African countries reached $16.293 billion in the previous year, while the figure stood at $13.595 in the preceding year, the TPO portal reported.

Iraq with $8.9 billion of imports, United Arab Emirates (UAE) with $4.9 billion, Oman with $716 million, Ghana with $353 million, and South Africa with $254 million were the top export destinations for Iranian products in the year 1400, the official said.

Syria, Kuwait, Qatar, Nigeria, and Mozambique with $218 million, $158 million, $134 million, $125 million, and $98 million of imports from Iran, respectively, were ranked sixth to tenth among the Islamic Republic’s Arab and African trade partners in the mentioned year.

Also, official data show that Iran’s imports from its Arab and African trade partners also increased by 76 percent in 1400 compared to 1399 to stand at $18.479 billion. Iran had imported $10.470 billion worth of commodities from the mentioned counties in 1399, Piltan stated.

The UAE with $16.523 billion of exports, Iraq with $1.197 billion, Oman with $619 million, Syria with $30 million, and Lebanon with $18 million worth of exports were the top five suppliers of goods to Iran in the previous year, followed by Kuwait, Tanzania, Qatar, Ghana, and Ethiopia.

According to Piltan, the development of trade infrastructure including transportation, finance, banking, insurance, ports, customs, standardization, as well as supporting the establishment of commercial centers and upgrading the level of trade promotion activities such as holding exhibitions, exchanging trade delegations, and increasing the number of commercial attachés in target countries, in addition to holding economic and trade committee meetings, concluding trade agreements, and reducing trade tariffs, as well as increasing the exports of knowledge-based and high value-added products are among TPO’s most important programs to increase trade with Arab and African countries.

EF/MA