The Cultural Council of the Embassy of Iran in Kenya and the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Nairobi, hosted a seminar "Footprints of Iranians in East African Coast" ​​which was held at the university's amphitheater.

Dr. Ali Gholampour, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Kenya, considered the relationship between Iran and Kenya to be very long and deep, and referred to it as going back hundreds of years when the Shirazis migrated to this region and formed the Shirazi city-state, influencing the economic, architectural, Swahili language, and cultural spheres of this region.

Ghorbanali Pourmarjan, our country's cultural advisor in Kenya, also referred to the relationship between Iran and East Africa a thousand years ago and said: "When talking about the presence of Iranians in the African region, the issue of Iranian civilization is also raised because the Shirazis who immigrated to the East African region were among the elite of their time, who were able to form the Shirazi city-states after a while and rule for hundreds of years."

He stated: "We can witness the civilizational remains of Iran in these regions, because the village of Shiraz in southern Kenya still exists with dozens of historical monuments that are the common heritage of the two countries."

Francis Owaka, a professor of philosophy at the University of Nairobi, made some points about the importance of this seminar and the history of this faculty's cooperation with the Iranian Cultural  Council, saying: This seminar has received more than 15 scientific research articles. Professors from 7 major universities in Kenya and Iran will present their articles in this seminar, and we hope that after a while these articles will be published in a collection, which will be very valuable .

Mrs. Fatemeh Achani, the Governor of Kwale, who attended the conference as a special guest, said: "As the only Kenyan Muslim woman who is a governor, I participated in today's seminar with great honor. My roots are also from the Shirazis' generation. I have always sought to develop studies in the field of Shirazis' footsteps. Today, this has been realized through the efforts of the Iranian Cultural Consultation and the University of Nairobi. I am certain that Iran, as a civilized country, carries vast wealth and technology. We hope that by expanding relations with this brotherly and friendly country, we can strive to strengthen bilateral relations."

Next, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Nairobi and the Vice Chancellor for Research of the university spoke about the historical presence of Iranians in this region of East Africa and joint research activities with Iran to strengthen relations between the two countries.

Amir Bahram Arab Ahmadi, a professor of history at the University of Tehran and an expert in the field of Africa (sent by the General Directorate of Academic Scientific Cooperation of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization), was another speaker at the seminar, who presented his article on the history of the Shiraz presence in East Africa, the impact and repercussions of these movements on the coasts of East Africa and the southern regions of Iran.

The "Soroush Molana" artistic group also resonated with the sounds of traditional Iranian music, and the professors continued their discussions and dialogues in specialized panels