Turkey- Turkish envoy foresees vibrant cooperation with Africa
Date
3/26/2016 1:23:21 AM
(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) >Newly appointed Turkish Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union Fatih Ulusoy on Friday expressed readiness to take his country’s cooperation with Ethiopia in trade and investment to new heights.
Ulusoy made the remarks a day after submitting his letter of credentials to Ethiopia’s president Dr. Mulatu Teshome to head Turkey’s oldest diplomatic mission to Africa.
“With foreign direct investment that to date has stood at $2.5 billion we are leading statistically” he said pointing to Turkey being the largest investor in Ethiopia.
Turkey’s trade volume with Africa at end-2015 stood at $19.5 billion he said. “We export $12 billion worth of goods while importing commodities valued at $7 billion.”
According to the ambassador Ethiopia is Turkey’s fourth-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa. “We will make it soon number one” he pledged.
Out of the $6 billion in Turkish direct investment in Africa Ethiopia’s share has stood at $2.5 billion making the horn of Africa country the largest recipient of Turkish FDI to date.
Cultural cooperation
Ulusoy said Turkey has been very proactive in promoting longstanding cultural ties with Ethiopia through the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA).
“We have two big restoration projects the biggest in Tigray” he said explaining that restoration of the Tomb of Al Nejashi in Wukro Woreda in Northern Ethipia’s Tigray Regional State is set to wrap up this year.
The other restoration project he said is on the old Ottoman Consulate building in the walled city of Harar in eastern Ethiopia.
These projects will attract lots of visitors and help promote the country’s tourism Ulusoy said. “We want to leave a positive mark.”
Humanitarian aid
The ambassador went on to say that he has held consultations with Turkish investors operating in Ethiopia. “They are willing to contribute to humanitarian aid to Ethiopians affected by the current drought situation.
“Very soon they will announce their humanitarian contributions” he said adding Turkey has the best track record in supplying humanitarian aid in East Africa.
He described Turkey’s humanitarian operations in Somalia as a model adding that last month’s Somalia High-Level Partnership Forum in Istanbul was highly successful.
Ethiopia is the first sub-Saharan Africa country that Turkey established modern diplomatic relations with dating from the Ottoman consul stationed in Harar before World War I.
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