Türkiye’s Ambassador to Zambia Istem Cırcıroğlu on Tuesday pledged continued relief support to help restore food security in the drought-hit southern African nation.
This came after the Turkish government, through its Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), handed over 600 food packages worth $25,000 (TL 808,615) to the Zambian Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) in the capital, Lusaka. The packages included mealie meal, beans, cooking oil, sugar, salt, honey and rice.
In 2024, Turkish relief and assistance to Zambia has so far amounted to close to $2.5 million, Cırcıroğlu said, adding that many Turkish agencies, including Türkiye’s Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), the Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay) and the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) are involved in relief efforts.
Receiving the donation, DMMU national coordinator Gabriel Pollen thanked Türkiye for being an all-weather partner.
Pollen said his team had continued implementing all efforts to respond to the emergency of drought, which has affected over 9 million people, according to the U.N.
Zambia has been experiencing the driest agricultural season in more than 40 years, which has resulted in significant crop losses, increased livestock deaths and worsening poverty.
Different perspective on Türkiye's momentum
Having opened its first office in Africa in Ethiopia in 2005, TIKA has become an institution carrying out activities in 54 countries of the continent in the past 17 years.
Having recently signed a cooperation agreement with the African Union Commission in the field of development, TIKA realizes many projects in the field of development in Africa.
Throughout 2023, TIKA has extended its hand of friendship and assistance to many countries of the world with 1,326 projects and activities in various fields.
Founded in 1992, TIKA has implemented over 30,000 projects and activities to date, with 93% of them being carried out since 2002.
In 2002, TIKA had 12 program coordination offices worldwide. By 2023, this number will have increased to 63 and the number of countries where it operates will have grown from 28 to over 170. The organization plans to increase the number of its coordination offices worldwide in 2024.