TEHRAN – Iran and Senegal have signed six memorandums of understanding (MOUs) and agreements at the end of the two countries’ fifth Joint Economic Committee meeting which was wrapped up in Senegal’s capital Dakar on Friday.

Co-chaired by Iran’s Agriculture Minister Mohammadali Nikbakht and Senegal's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ismaila Madior Fall, the fifth Iran-Senegal Joint Economic Committee meeting was held during December 21-22 after a 12-year hiatus.

As reported by the Iranian Agriculture Ministry portal, during the two-day event, the two sides discussed ways of expanding ties in various areas including agriculture, trade, investment, etc.

On the sidelines of the committee meeting, Nikbakht met and held talks with senior Senegalese officials including his counterpart and the county’s Foreign Minister.

Speaking in his meeting with Madior Fall, the Iranian minister said: “Tehran does not have any restrictions for developing relations with African countries and is ready for any cooperation and sharing its experiences with Senegal."

“The Islamic Republic of Iran has experienced the most severe sanctions and pressures, and despite them, it has achieved many successes in the fields of modern technologies, knowledge-based economy, energy, and agriculture, and in this field, it is ready to cooperate with friendly countries based on common interests,” Nikbakht said.

Madior for his part pointed to the good relations between the two countries based on religious and cultural commonalities, and said: “The meetings of high-ranking officials, including the presidents of the two countries, on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in South Africa, show the will of Tehran and Dakar to develop relations in various economic, commercial, and agricultural fields.”

He expressed hope that holding the fifth meeting of the two countries’ Joint Economic Committee will lead to the all-round promotion and expansion of relations, especially in the economic field, and in this way, a new window will be opened in the cooperation of the two countries for mutual progress.

In another meeting with Senegal’s Agriculture Minister, Nikbakht invited his Senegalese counterpart to visit Tehran and announced the readiness of his ministry to hold training courses and transfer knowledge to Senegalese experts and farmers.

EF/MA