After 1970 Ceausescu systematically cultivated relations with the less-developed countries, African nations in particular. Numerous African leaders called on Ceausescu in Bucharest, and he embarked on long African tours almost every year. Ceausescu travelled to nearly every African country except South Africa on several occasions. These annual tours gave him the opportunity to appear as an international statesman, and they resulted in general trade agreements. The less-developed countries were viewed as a source of raw materials and a market for Romanian manufactured goods that did not fare well in the West.

Data as of July 1989