TEHRAN – Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) held a workshop on the expansion of economic cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Africa, on Saturday, during which the attendees explored ways of expanding economic cooperation between Iran and East African countries especially Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya.

The event was attended by senior officials from Iran and the mentioned African countries, including Director-General of TPO’s Africa Office Mohammad-Sadeq Qanadzadeh, Uganda’s Ambassador to Iran Muhammad Tezikuba Kisambira, Kenya’s Ambassador to Tehran Joshua Gatimu, and Iran’s Ambassador to Nairobi Jafar Barmaki.

Speaking at the workshop, Qanadzadeh stated that promoting cultural awareness, informing, and creating infrastructure are among the main missions of the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran to establish more economic and trade interactions between Iran and the target countries in Africa.

“In order to better inform the businessmen of our country about the trade situation in target countries, we have already held several conferences,” Qanadzadeh said.

Further in the meeting, Uganda’s Ambassador to Tehran Kisambira underlined his country’s free trade status, saying that Uganda has important advantages for investors.

The ambassador pointed out that his country has wide access to international markets and commercial companies can benefit from this advantage to expand their imports and exports.

“Companies that are eager to invest in the field of agriculture can also use suitable and cheap farmland to produce and export all kinds of fruits and foodstuff,” he said.

The official suggested establishing a barter trade mechanism between Iran and Uganda to facilitate trade transactions and to remove potential banking barriers.

“To solve the currency problems, the two countries can benefit from a barter trade mechanism in their trade exchanges,” Kisambira said.

He also emphasized Iran’s advantages in the field of pharmaceuticals and medical services, saying: “Iran is considered one of the region’s top drug-producing countries in terms of quality, and in Uganda, only Indian companies can compete with Iranian products, so Iranian companies can easily take over the pharmaceutical market.”

The official further stressed the strategic location of Uganda in the African continent as a gateway to enter the entire East African market, as an important advantage for investors and emphasized: “investment in the field of tourism, due to the presence of protected parks and beautiful tourist areas, can also be an interesting area for Iranian companies. Also, investing in the construction sector is considered a suitable investment in Uganda for Iranian companies.”

EF/MA