Speaking at the 3rd Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit, President Erdoğan recalled that Turkey had turned a new page in its relations with the continent by having declared 2005 as Africa Year, and noted: “While we have embraced each other once again with our African brothers and sisters, we have worked to advance our cooperation on ‘equal partnership and win-win’ basis. We have always rejected contemptuous, peremptory and excessively orientalist perspectives towards the continent.”

Prior to the Summit, held with the theme of “Enhanced Partnership for Common Development and Prosperity”, Erdoğan welcomed one by one all the visiting heads of state and government. Following the welcoming, the leaders posed for a family photo.

“We reject contemptuous perspectives towards Africa”

Voicing his pleasure over hosting the participating heads of state and government in Istanbul, Erdoğan recalled that Turkey had turned a new page in its relations with the continent by having declared 2005 as Africa Year, and noted: “While we have embraced each other once again with our African brothers and sisters, we have worked to advance our cooperation on ‘equal partnership and win-win’ basis. We have always rejected contemptuous, peremptory and excessively orientalist perspectives towards the continent. We have given our cooperation, which has gained momentum with the Africa initiative, a holistic structure by having become a strategic partner of the African Union in 2008.”

“We will increase our bilateral trade volume to $50 billion at the first stage”

Underscoring that Turkey closely followed the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area, which had taken effect on January 1, 2021, Erdoğan said: “I am of the belief that we will increase our bilateral trade volume to $50 billion through our joint efforts at the first stage, and then to $75 billion. The progress made over the past 16 years clearly shows that the true potential between Turkey and Africa is way beyond these goals. In addition to trade and investments, cooperation in other areas has been enhanced as well. The number of the Turkish embassies in Africa, which was 12 in 2005, has been increased to 42. In 2000’s there were only 10 embassies of African countries in Ankara, a number which has now risen to 37.”

“It is a grave injustice that Africa does not have a say at UNSC”

Erdoğan went on to say: “We maintain the struggle we are putting up under the principle of, ‘The World is Bigger than 5,’ not just for ourselves but also for our African brothers and sisters. The incidents we have gone through over the past few years have laid bare the wrongfulness of abandoning the fate of the entire humanity to the Security Council’s 5 permanent members. It is a grave injustice that Africa, which has a population of 1.3 billion, does not have a say or vote at the Security Council. I believe that we should join forces to make Africa be represented at the Security Council in a way it deserves.” (ILKHA)