AFRICA
Developing our relations and cooperation with the African Continent
constitute one of the basic principles of our multi-dimensional foreign
policy.
It is expected that Africa will play a more active role in the
international system as of the second half of the 21st century
and assume an increasingly important role on the global stage. The economic
and commercial potential and geopolitical weight of the rapidly developing
Continent in several areas have started to attract a vast number of
countries and investors to Africa in recent years.
Turkey shares its own historical experience, social, political and cultural
accumulation as well as its opportunities and resources with African
countries under the principle of "African solutions for African problems"
and on the basis of mutual benefit.
Constructed on a historical foundation, Turkey's Africa policy involves
establishing political, humanitarian, economic and cultural relations on
bilateral, regional, continental and global levels.
In recent years, significant progress has been made in our relations with
the Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries in numerous fields. Turkey’s
African Initiative Policy process, which started in 1998, gained momentum
when our country became an observing member and strategic partner of the
African Union (AU) in 2005 and 2008 respectively. Since then, rapid
progress has been made in several fields such as trade, investment,
cultural projects, security and military cooperation, development projects.
The African Initiative Policy, which was successfully completed, has been
replaced by the Africa Partnership Policy as of 2013.
With our Africa Partnership Policy, which is the product of an integrated
understanding that includes the activities of public institutions, private
sector, non-governmental organizations and humanitarian aid organizations,
we aim to contribute to the peace, stability, economic and social
development of the Continent, and develop our bilateral relations on the
basis of equal partnership and mutual benefit.
Mutual high-level visits play an important role in maintaining our Africa
Partnership Policy. H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the President of the
Republic of Turkey has visited (Algeria, Chad, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea,
Ethiopia, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Libya,
Madagascar, Mali, Egypt, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Republic
of South Africa, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda,
Zambia) 28 African countries so far, including his Prime
Ministry period.
Turkey attaches importance to opening diplomatic missions in all African
countries, in order to enhance its relations with the Continent. While the number of our Embassies in Africa was only 12 in 2002, it increased to 43 in 2021.
African countries have shown their appreciation for Turkey's attachment to the Continent by increasing the number of their Embassies in Ankara to 37, which used to be 10 at the beginning of 2008.
Along with our Embassies, Turkey's activities in the Continent have become
further prevalent with the help of our institutions such as the Turkish
Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), the Disaster and Emergency
Management Presidency (AFAD), Yunus Emre Institute, the Turkish Maarif
Foundation, the Turkish Religious Foundation, Anadolu Agency and Turkish
Airlines (THY).
One of the most concrete indicators of our strengthening relations is our
developing economic ties and rapidly increasing trade figures. Our total
trade volume with the African Continent has increased from 5,4 billion $ in
2003 to 25,3 billion $ in 2020. Our trade volume with Sub-Saharan African
countries, which used to be 1,35 billion $ in 2003 has reached 10 billion $
in 2020. Despite the pandemic conditions of 2020, Turkey has managed to
keep the trade volumes stable, which is a considerable success.
The volume of projects undertook by Turkish contracting companies rapidly
expanded and reached 19,5 billion $ in Sub-Saharan African countries and
71,1 billion $ in the African Continent. Turkey has established joint
Business Councils with 45 African countries and 40 Sub-Saharan African
countries.
Turkey aims to increase the number of Turkish Airlines flights to Africa
and facilitate interaction among business people in order to turn our
country into an intersection point for the African people to access to the
world and to strenghthen the ties between our people. Having reached 60
destinations in 39 countries before the pandemic, Turkish Airlines is
gradually increasing its number of flights with the lifting of travel bans.
We continue our humanitarian and development aid activities in almost every
corner of the Continent with the assistance of the Ministry of Health of
the Republic of Turkey, the General Directorate of Turkish Red Crescent and
Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) and our non-governmental
organizations. Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) currently
operates 22 Program Coordination Offices across Africa.
The scholarships provided by our country to African students is
strengthening Turkey's African policy. So far, Turkey has awarded more than 14.000 African students graduate, post-graduate and doctorate scholarships since 1992.
Up untill today, 249 diplomats from the African countries have participated
in "The International Junior Diplomats Training Program", which is being
organized every year since 1992 by the Diplomacy Academy of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey. Furthermore, our Diplomacy
Academy organises training programs on diplomacy, archive and communication
in order to develop capacity building and human resources, upon the
requests received from the Foreign Ministries of the African countries.
Relations with the African Union
In addition to the bilateral relations of Turkey with the African
countries, relations with the African Union (AU) is getting stronger.
Turkey became an observer member of the AU in 2005 and was declared
strategic partner of the Continent at the Summit held in 2008. The
relations attained a sustainable mechanism at the First Turkey-Africa
Partnership Summit in Istanbul, which was held on 18-21 August 2008.
Turkey and Africa have agreed to implement projects simultaneously in
various fields along with the five-year schedule programme, which was
adopted with "The 2015-2019 Joint Implementation Plan" at the Second
Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit, held on 19-21 November 2014 in Malabo,
the capital of Equatorial Guinea. In this context, projects developed
according to the priorities of the African countries, in the fields of
trade and investment, peace and security, education and culture, youth
empowerment and technology transfer, rural economy and agriculture, energy
and transportation have been implemented.
In addition, Turkey took the decision to carry out “Ministerial Review
Conferences” with the AU, during the Summit meetings to be held every five
years. The Second Turkey-African Union Ministerial Review Conference was
held in Istanbul on 11-12 February 2018. The Conference constituted a good
opportunity in addressing all aspects of Turkey-Africa Partnership.
We aim to host the Third Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit in 2021, under
the auspices of H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the President of the
Republic of Turkey. We believe that the Summit will start a new stage in
our relations with the AU and Continental countries.
The AU also aims to develop and enhance its relations and strategic
partnership with our country, which is underlined in the 2063 Agenda: “The
Africa We Want of the African Union”. Hence, Turkey and the AU attach
importance to the AU 2063 Agenda, as well as the 2030 Agenda for
“Sustainable Development of the United Nations” as the guiding frameworks
to enhance their partnership, based on inclusive growth and sustainable
development of the African countries.