Venezuela and Iran have signed an agreement to jointly build 10,000 homes in Venezuela at a total cost of just over 400 million U.S. dollars, state-run Bolivarian News Agency(ABN) said on Friday.

Under the agreement, Iranian company Keyso Corporations will build, within 15 months, four large housing estates, each with 2,500 homes, in the Venezuelan states -- Barinas, Monagas, Portuguesa and Cojedes, according to the report.

Venezuela and Iran have signed a series of cooperative deals in recent months, including joint ventures for the manufacture of cement, building materials, industrial machinery, trucks, passenger buses and tractors.

In February the two governments agreed to set up a pool of 200 million dollars to help fund business and social projects.

In the same month, Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, leader of the Iranian parliament, visited Caracas to help strengthen ties between the two nations.

A bilateral agreement to promote and protect investments between Venezuelan and Iranian companies also came into force on Friday, which was publicized in Venezuela's official gazette.

Source: Xinhua