Türkiye plants memorial forest in South Africa to mark 100th anniversary

By Hassan Isilow

JOHANNESBURG (AA) – Türkiye’s ambassador to South Africa has officiated at the planting of a memorial forest at a school on the outskirts of Johannesburg to commemorate Türkiye’s 100th anniversary of the republic.

“We planted fruit trees such as apples, peach, and pear fruits at Greyville Primary School in Lenasia, south of Johannesburg,” Aysegul Kandas told Anadolu on Friday.

Kandas said the tree planting event was organized by the Turkish cultural center the Yunus Emre Institute in Johannesburg in collaboration with the Department of Basic Education in Gauteng province.

“We planted the trees to also commemorate Türkiye’s National Forestation Day that is marked annually on Nov 11,” Kandas said, adding that the memorial park is a gift of great sincerity from the people of Türkiye to the children of South Africa.

She said the Yunus Emre Institute will continue to plant more memorial forests throughout the country to mark Türkiye’s 100th anniversary of the republic.

Kandas encouraged the Greyville students to protect the trees and plant at least one tree in their lifetime in order to conserve and protect the environment.