Vice-President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Hossein Selahvarzi has proposed for bartering Iranian different products and services for Malian cotton and minerals.
The ICCIMA vice president made the remarks in a meeting in Bamako on Monday with Malian Minister of Industry and Trade Mahmoud Ould Mohamed.
Selahvarzi’s visit to Mali is taking place as Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian also left Tehran for Bamako on the same day as the first leg of his African tour which will then take him to Tanzania and Zanzibar.
Speaking during the meeting Selahvarzi said that Iran has always attached special significance to promotion of ties with Africa in line with its economic and foreign trade promotion plans.
The Iranian government officials and the country’s private sector have always been seeking ways for further enhanced relations with Africa, Selahvarzi said, noting that expansion of economic cooperation with Mali is of prime importance for Iran.
Referring to Iran’s capabilities in infrastructural and technical and engineering areas, he said that Iran can launch textile production lines in Mali as the country is rich in cotton fields and its economy highly relies on the product.
The Iran Chamber of Commerce vice president also voiced Iran’s readiness to build a cement factory for Mali to meet the country’s needs for an annual 3 million tons of cement.
He also believed that the two countries can cooperate in overseas farming, and supplying agricultural machineries and city buses.
Voicing Tehran’s readiness for barter trade with Bamako, Selahvarzi said that Iran is ready to barter its products and services for Malian cotton, minerals and other natural resources.
Mali welcomes increased interactions with Iran
In the meantime, the Malian minister referred to cordial relations between the two countries, noting that Mali welcomes further promotion of trade, economic, and investment relations with Iran.
He also called for forming a joint cooperation committee between the chambers of commerce of Iran and Mali to help solve the problems of the way of expansion of economic cooperation.
The official expressed hope that a first joint economic commission of Iran and Mali will yield good results and pave the way for future interactions.
