Rwanda and Turkey have agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas of trade, transportation, health and education.
The two countries engaged in discussions during the just concluded Third-Africa Partnership Summit in Turkey that gathered about 16 African heads of states, including Félix Tshisekedi, current chair of the African Union, Senegal’s Macky Sall, Ghana’s Nana Akufo-Addo, representing ECOWAS, Rwanda’s Paul Kagame, Zimbabwe’s Emmerson Mnangagwa and Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria.
They were accompanied by 102 ministers, including 26 foreign ministers, from 39 countries.
Kagame said that, “In short period of time, diplomatic and partnership relations between Africa, Rwanda and Turkey have grown rapidly and strongly mainly in the areas of trade, transportation, health and education.’’
Kagame reminded that Turkey become a reliable partner and market for Africa’s goods and materials with exports increasing significantly and therefore that the good relations between two countries will be a catalyst tapping available mutual benefits.
“These gains will leave have to be sustained and there is no doubt that our mutually beneficial cooperation under the Joint Action Plan will be a catalyst for this.”
President Kagame said Peace and Security are also the focal areas of cooperation between two countries.
“First, Peace and Security as also clarified by the Chair of the African Countries and governance have been at the core of transformation journey for all of us.”
President Kagame, who is also currently Chairperson of the AU Development Agency New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUCA-NEPAD) as well as African Union Leader for Domestic Health Financing, lauded Turkey’s continued cooperation with Africa stating that “I commend Turkey for supporting members of African Union through joint activities, which contribute to the implementation of continental priorities.”
He said Africa and Turkey are working on a Draft Joint Action Plan which will strengthen Africa’s collaboration with Turkey for the next years.
Meanwhile, Turkish foreign direct investment in Africa grew from US$100million in 2003 to US$6.5billion 2021 as well as the significance of Turkish companies across Africa.
Particularly in Rwanda, the total amount of Turkish investments reached over US$400 million in 2020, constituting 13% of Foreign Direct Investments in Rwanda.
The Turkish investments in Rwanda are largely in areas of manufacturing, construction materials, furniture, water treatment, household goods and personal use of hygienic products.
The two-day summit, hosted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, marks a new stage in Turkey’s relations with the African Union and African countries, according to Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
The two-day summit agenda reviewed cooperation between Turkey and African countries since the second summit in 2014 (see below) and drew up a framework for the partnership process going forward.
A parallel session on health took place on the margins of the summit on 17 December under the theme “Mobilising Potentials for African Health Needs in the Pandemic and Post-Pandemic Era” with ministers of health and heads of delegation from Africa and Turkish minister of health Fahrettin Koca in attendance.
“As the theme of this event is ‘Enhanced Partnership for Common Development and Prosperity’, we want to march down this path of development with our African friends and take our cooperation into the future. Our aim is to win with Africa and walk to the future together,” Çavusoglu told delegates on the first day of the summit.
He also announced that Turkey would deliver 2.5m doses of COVID vaccine to Africa in the coming days.
Source: https://taarifa.rw/
