Africa has the same level of significance for Iran as the Persian Gulf does," the Iranian foreign minister said during his meeting with Iranian businessmen and nationals residing in Uganda on Monday night.
Zarif likened ties with African countries to the relations with the neighboring countries, adding that they are "within the strategic policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran".
In recent years, Iran has sought hard to boost ties and cooperation with Africa.
Iran is an observing member of the African Union (AU) and has shown an active presence in previous AU summit meetings.