Turkey aims to provide 'transparent' education in Mali

By Omer Yasin Ergin

BAMAKO, Mali (AA) - The Turkish state-supported foundation looks to provide "transparent" education to students in the West African country after taking over the schools, which were previously linked to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), an official said.

“We are telling all the students and their relatives that ‘we are not merchants.’ On behalf of the Republic of Turkey, we are taking over these schools and are operating,” Selahattin Yazar, Maarif Foundation’s director in Mali, told Anadolu Agency.

“Our aim is to establish healthier, open and more transparent education system,” Yazar said, adding that the goal is to help students become the individuals, who will work for benefits of humanity.

All the schools linked to the FETO terror group have been handed over to the Maarif Foundation as part of an agreement signed with Mali Education Ministry in August 2017.

Turkey established the Maarif Foundation (TMF) in 2016 after the coup attempt to take over the administration of overseas schools linked to FETO. It also establishes schools and education centers abroad.

“After taking over the schools, we’ve reduced the prices of the schools by 20 percent. We’ve raised the salaries of employees by around 15 percent,” Yazar said.

As the previous owners did, the schools do not train personnel to be used for their own benefits, he emphasized.

Around 2,533 students are studying in 20 schools operated by Maarif Foundation in Mali.

There are 520 employees, including 27 educators, who came from Turkey and Europe, Yazar said, and added that 200 students will be graduated this year.

According to the Turkish government, the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.