Turkish, African businesspeople meet at World Cooperation Industries Forum in Istanbul

By Ugur Aslanhan and Emirhan Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – The World Cooperation Industries (WCI) Forum started on Wednesday in Istanbul, with some 1,500 African businesspeople set to meet with representatives of Turkish small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) through Thursday.

Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat said at the opening of the forum that since the adoption of the Strategy for the Development of Commercial and Economic Relations with African Countries in 2003, the trade volume between Türkiye and continental Africa has shot up from $5.4 billion to a whopping $37 billion.

In the first nine months of the year alone, the trade volume between Türkiye and Africa reached $27 billion, he said.

Meanwhile, the number of Turkish embassies in African countries quadrupled from 12 to 44 over the same period, and this is expected to reach 50 in the near future, he said. Similarly, Turkish trade consultancies only existed in four African nations at the time, a stark difference from today’s 31.

Bolat said Africa assumed an active role with its large economic potential and increasing weight, as the continent is estimated to have reached $3 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP) with 3.7% overall growth this year.

The continent’s growth potential indicate that it will become a hub in the medium to long term, he said, and Türkiye’s strategies with Africa offer “win-win” outcomes.

Via the strategy, Türkiye’s investments in African countries rose to $2.3 billion in 2023 from $67 million in 2003 in stocks, making up $10 billion in market value, while creating 100,000 jobs in Africa in many sectors, such as food, textiles, construction, mining, energy, and more.

Bolat said efforts to make new agreements with African nations continue, as the number of flights via Turkish Airlines to the continent rises and cooperation opportunities are laid on the table through joint economic commissions.

The free trade agreements Türkiye has with Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Mauritius, and Sudan also contribute to the trade.

He added that the biennial Türkiye-Africa Business and Economic Forum to be held for the fifth time next October will include top Turkish officials and representatives from Africa.

*Writing by Emir Yildirim