TEHRAN – Head of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Hossein Selahvarzi has called for forming innovative monetary mechanisms in order to expand trade ties with Africa.

Selahvarzi made the remarks in a meeting with Nigeria’s Ambassador to Tehran Yakubu Santuraki Suleiman on Thursday, the ICCIMA portal reported.

Speaking in this meeting, the ICCIMA head pointed to transportation and banking problems as the two main obstacles in the way of developing business relations between Iran and African countries, including Nigeria, and emphasized: “We must focus on finding innovative monetary mechanisms.”

Stating that the main strategy of the ICCIMA, as the representative of Iran’s private sector, is in line with the general policies of the Iranian government in developing relations with various countries, especially African nations, he added: “Africa, and especially Nigeria, is of great importance to us as the gateway to West Africa, and we do not consider it only as a large oil producing and exporting country.”

“We are aware of the various capacities of Nigeria, including the country's membership in the West African Union, which can be a good opportunity for Iranian producers and exporters to access the markets of the mentioned union,” he added.

Selahvarzi further expressed ICCIMA’s interest in expanding relations with Nigeria’s chambers of commerce and the country’s private sector.

Mentioning some of the common fields for economic cooperation, the official said: "In Iran, we have capable companies active in the field of technical and engineering services that can participate in the construction of houses, roads, and infrastructure in Nigeria. Also, since the Nigerian market has an increasing demand for liquefied natural gas, in addition to oil and gas projects, we can also introduce our companies that are active in this field to collaborate with their Nigerian counterparts.”

Santuraki Suleiman for his part congratulated Selahvarzi for his election as the head of the ICCIMA, saying: “The volume of business relations between Iran and Nigeria is small, and I hope that with the support of the ICCIMA, especially after the recent visit of the President of Iran, new gates will be opened for the expansion of business relations between the two countries.”

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Photo: ICCIMA Head Hossein Selahvarzi (R) and Nigeria’s Ambassador to Tehran Yakubu Santuraki Suleiman