Türkiye regards development cooperation as a key foreign policy instrument aimed at fostering peace, stability, and prosperity. This approach is also in line with Türkiye’s “enterprising and humanitarian” foreign policy.
While Türkiye has been delivering humanitarian aid since the Ottoman times, it was in the 21st century when Türkiye emerged as one of the top donors in official development assistance, mainly thanks to the Post-Cold War era, which marked a drastic shift in global geopolitics.
Türkiye’s journey in development cooperation, which started in mid-1980s, has evolved over the years, covering various regions around the globe ranging from the Middle East to Africa, from Latin America to Southeast Asia. Therefore, thanks to its growing political influence, economic dynamism, and technical capacity, Türkiye has emerged as a prominent actor in official development assistance, with being the top donor in 2018 and 2019 according to the OECD-DAC (Development Assistance Committee) data.
Türkiye has engaged in limited efforts such as providing technical assistance to Afghanistan in the early years of the republic. Nevertheless, Türkiye has officially introduced its first foreign aid programme, through the then called State Planning Organization in 1985 covering Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal, Somalia, and Sudan.
The post-Cold War transformation of the international system, particularly the emergence of newly independent states in Central Asia, in dire need of political and economic transformation, has urged Türkiye to set up a full-fledged national development agency back in 1992, namely TIKA, as currently called the “Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency”.
In the 1990s, when Türkiye laid down the institutional foundation of its development cooperation policy, along with Central Asia, the focus areas were also the neighbouring Balkans and the Caucasus. From the 2000s onward, Türkiye expanded its development cooperation to also cover the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific.
Initiatives such as the declaration of the “Year of Africa,” the “Year of Latin America and the Carribbean”, introduction of specific Action Plans for these regions, Strategic Partnership with the African Union and the adoption of “Africa Partnership Policy” paved the way for a closer cooperation with some countries in the regions that Türkiye has had limited engagement before.
The Turkish Airlines expanded its direct flight network which facilitated logistical support for these efforts. The number of Turkish diplomatic missions over the last two decades increased significantly, with Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, currently enjoying the third biggest diplomatic network globally. The broad Turkish diplomatic network has also been instrumental in Türkiye’s reaching out to distant and wide-ranging geographies.
Furthermore, over the last two decades, not only existing institutions such as TIKA stepped up its institutional capacity, currently having a vast network of offices worldwide, but also new governmental agencies/public foundations were set up such as the Yunus Emre Institute (2007), AFAD, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (2009), YTB, the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (2010) and the Türkiye Maarif Foundation (2016), to provide development and/or humanitarian assistance.
Turkish NGOs, which are also active in providing aid across the globe, complement the efforts of the official authorities. Therefore, currently ranging from the governmental institutions to universities, from local governments to NGOs, various stake-holders in Türkiye carry out development assistance in wide-ranging fields in collaboration with their local counterparts across five continents.
Türkiye’s development cooperation is based on grants, shaped according to the requests and priorities of beneficiary countries and no conditions are attached to aid. Turkish development officers work hand-in-hand with local authorities even in war-ridden countries, which gives them a unique perspective to assess the needs and oversee the implementation of projects right on the spot.
A significant portion of development assistance is directed towards education, health and the development of infrastructure. Türkiye puts a special emphasis on capacity building activities to contribute to beneficiary country’s efforts to reach self-sufficiency in various fields. Turkish development cooperation also focuses on empowering women, increasing their participation in the workforce, and supporting disadvantaged groups.
The “Türkiye Scholarships” program enables thousands of international students to pursue higher education in Türkiye, serving as a long-term investment in human capital.
Restoration of cultural heritage abroad is another focus area that the Turkish development aid is directed to, as Türkiye, with its vast experience and knowledge, is dedicated to contributing to efforts to hand down the cultural heritage from past to future generations.
Emergence of Türkiye as a prominent donor in official development assistance, and the need for effective coordination and implementation of humanitarian and technical aid necessitated the establishment of the Directorate General for Humanitarian and Technical Assistance within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in April 2024.
Through its comprehensive aid programme, Türkiye is also at the forefront of international efforts to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Türkiye is thus actively supporting the international poverty reduction efforts and eradication of extreme poverty as well.
Likewise, Türkiye is strongly committed to doing its share in addressing the needs of the most vulnerable, particularly the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Accordingly, Türkiye hosts the UN Technology Bank for LDCs (UNTBLDC), the only UN entity exclusively focused on transforming the LDCs through science, technology and innovation.
Türkiye, thanks to its vast diplomatic network and wide-ranging institutions providing development assistance, will resolutely continue to contribute to the development efforts on a global scale.