(Ecofin Agency) - Officials from Burkina Faso and Iran met last October 2 to 5 in Ouagadougou to strengthen their cooperation and explore new areas of partnership. The next session is scheduled for 2025 in Tehran.

Burkina Faso’s Foreign Minister, Olivia Rouamba, signed 8 new partnership agreements with Sayed Solat Mortazavi, the Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare of Iran. This was during the first session of the joint cooperation commission between the two countries held last October 2 to 5 in Ouagadougou.

According to the official statement made public by the Burkina Faso Government Information Service (SIG), the deals target the energy and mining sector, the pharmaceutical industry, vocational training, employment, and entrepreneurship development as well as defense and security. Ms. Rouamba said both parties have committed, along with sector experts, to continue working towards win-win agreements while Sayed Solat Mortazavi reaffirmed his country's dedication to assisting Burkina Faso in combating insecurity. Iran also supports the military regime which, according to Sayed Solat Mortazavi, "focuses on and defends national sovereignty."

As a reminder, Tehran and Ouagadougou, currently experiencing political instability, are both against some Western powers. In Burkina Faso, the transitional president -Captain Traoré, who came to power following a coup, denounces the lingering Western imperialism 60 years after African independence, and an imbalance in international relations characterized by unfair dominance of northern countries over southern ones. Iran on its side is against the “relentless pressure” from the Western world.