Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi went on a trip to Africa from July 11 to 13, 2023, during which he visited Kenya, Uganda, and Zimbabwe on invitations from the leaders of the three countries, President William Ruto, Yoweri Museveni and President Emmerson Mnangagwa, respectively. Raisi led a high-level delegation including First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Health Minister Behrouz Aghaei, and Minister of Agriculture Seyyed Javad Sadati Nejad, and several other high-ranking officials and businessmen.
Implications of the Tour
This visit marks the first time an Iranian President has visited Africa in 11 years, thus has several implications that can be highlighted as follows:
1. Signing economic and trade agreements:
President Raisi emphasized the need to strengthen economic relations between Iran and African countries, which are currently at a relatively low level, with the volume of trade between the two sides standing at less than USD 1.2 billion. During a joint press conference with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto at the beginning of his African tour, Raisi underlines the importance of striving to increase trade between Tehran and Nairobi by tenfold in the initial stage and aiming for 20 to 30 times in the future. In this context, five memoranda of cooperation were signed between the two sides in the fields of communications, healthcare, livestock breeding, and maritime fishing.
In addition, Iran signed four cooperation documents with Uganda, which was the second stop on President Raisi’s tour. The agreements covered visa exemptions, agricultural cooperation, as well as the establishment of a permanent joint committee. Furthermore, President Raisi inaugurated the Innovation and Technology Office, to promote Iranian knowledge-based products in fields such as pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, vaccines, and others.
During Raisi's visit to Zimbabwe, Iran and the African country signed twelve memoranda of understanding covering various sectors such as energy, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and communications, in addition to projects related to research, science, and technology.
2. Transfer of Iranian expertise:
Tehran seeks to transfer its expertise in certain fields to the African market to promote its economic presence. President Raisi presented his Kenyan counterpart with plans for establishing a plant in the coastal city of Mombasa to manufacture an indigenous Iranian car named Kifaru, or rhino in Swahili. Additionally, a major agreement was reached with President Museveni whereby Iran would support the building of an oil refinery and a 1443-kilometer-long pipeline to serve the oil industry following the discovery of new crude oil wells in the African country.
During Raisi's visit to Harare, a memorandum of understanding was also signed on the delivery of 200 Iranian-made agricultural tractors in the first phase. This will be followed by the transfer of Iranian technology of tractor production and the establishment of a production line in Zimbabwe.
While in Zimbabwe, President Raisi also visited an Iranian farm in Uganda, which marked the launch of Iran’s inaugural agricultural project outside its territory.
3. Asserting Iranian cultural presence:
During his visit to Kampala, Raisi met with a group of Ugandan Muslims at the largest mosque in East Africa. The meeting is part of Tehran's efforts to spread Shi’ism in East Africa, while also carrying out its policy of supporting Shi’ite minorities in West Africa. Iran may be seeking to establish Kampala as a base for this endeavor, especially because of the presence of the Khoja Shi’ite community in Uganda.
The estimated number of Muslims in Uganda is around 12.5% of the total population, with the majority belonging to the Sunni sect, while a minority adheres to the Shi’ite sect. President Raisi expressed his support for the Ugandan president in enacting a law against homosexuality, and strongly criticized the West for trying to destabilize the foundations of societies and the cultures of various nations.
4. Cooperation on civil drones:
During Raisi's visit to Nairobi, an Iranian drone called "Pelican 2" was unveiled. Designed for agricultural purposes, the drone stands out for its intelligent flight path detection program and dual applications for mapping, image processing, crop spraying, and detecting agricultural pests.
The development may reinforce Iran's plans to export military drones to African countries. Some reports have indicated that some African nations, such as Mali, have expressed interest in acquiring Iranian-made drones, while others, like Ethiopia, have already obtained them.
Objectives of the Visit
In light of the aforementioned facts, Tehran sought to achieve several objectives through the visit. The most prominent of these objectives are as follows:
1. Forging new partnerships:
This visit comes as part of Iran's efforts to strengthen its foreign relations and find new allies in Africa. This is particularly important given that Iran is under pressure from Washington and European countries over heightened disputes over its nuclear and missile programs, as well as its continued exports of "Shahed 136" drones to Russia for use in the war with Ukraine.
Iran and both Uganda and Zimbabwe share the experience of being under Western sanctions. President Raisi, during his visit to Kampala, affirmed that countering what he called “the powers of global arrogance," (referring to the West), is a common goal shared by both Iran and Uganda. Additionally, Raisi was welcomed in Harare by a group performing chants critical of the West.
Prior to his Africa tour, President Raisi visited three South American countries: Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba, from June 12 to June 16, 2023. The three countries were described by Tehran as "friendly nations" that share its opposition to what it terms "imperialist powers," particularly the United States. Additionally, President Raisi visited Indonesia on May 23, 2023, where an agreement was signed between both sides to increase bilateral trade. These Iranian efforts indicate a desire to mitigate the economic and political impact of the sanctions imposed by the West.
2. Marginalizing the nuclear talks:
By turning to Africa, Iran aims to send messages to Washington and European powers involved in the nuclear agreement that it does not rely heavily on reaching an agreement with the West about its nuclear program despite the recent talks held between Iran and Western powers, both in New York, United States, and Gulf Arab capitals. By doing so, Iran would strengthen its position in the negotiations and mitigate pressures imposed on it by Western powers to force out concessions from Tehran during the talks to assert that it is Iran who is seeking an agreement that would lead to the lifting of the sanctions.
However, despite the above, there are still obstacles to foreign trade development between Iran and these countries. Foremost among these obstacles is their fear of entering into partnerships with Iran and drawing sanctions from the United States. Additionally, there are persistent difficulties blocking cash and financial transfers due to Iran's refusal to accept the conditions set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which prevent it from accessing the international banking system. Moreover, the fragility of the economies of African countries and Iran's declining industrial infrastructure further hinders its ability to benefit from raw materials in those countries. Consequently, the actual benefits of cooperation between Iran and African countries are reduced, providing some Iranian circles with an argument that reaching an agreement with the West is the beginning of a real solution to Iran's economic crises.
3. Boosting Iran’s engagement in the region:
President Raisi's African tour aims to strengthen Iran's relations with countries in the region, an effort launched by restoration of relations with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Iran seeks to open up in the same way to other countries in the region. In this context, recent efforts resulted in an agreement to restore diplomatic relations between Iran and Algeria following a visit by Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf to Tehran on July 8, 2023, where he met with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and President Raisi.
Moreover, in late June 2023, Amir-Abdollahian expressed Iran’s desire to resume diplomatic relations with Morocco. He also met with his Sudanese counterpart, Ali al-Sadiq Ali, on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement Foreign Ministers' meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan, on July 6, 2023, to discuss the restoration of relations between the two countries which had been suspended seven years ago.
In summary, it can be said that the current Iranian government led by President Raisi has intensified its interest in enhancing Iran's presence in Africa. This became evident in a visit made by Iran’s Foreign Minister on August 27, 2022, to Mali, Tanzania, and Zanzibar. Moreover, President Raisi's recent Africa tour coincided with a meeting between Prime Minister of Madagascar Christian Ntsay and Iranian Ambassador Hassan Ali Bakhshi, who both underlined the need for promoting relations between the two countries by forming a joint committee.
However, it should be noted that Iran is exaggerating the importance of relations with these countries and blowing them out of proportion to show them as an alternative to reaching an agreement with the West on its nuclear program. In reality, Iran will be facing challenges in enhancing its relations with African countries because it is still under sanctions imposed by the West.
