By Reginald Tapfumaneyi
Turkey ranks the first in the world for humanitarian aid providing almost 30 percent of the total 27.3 billion US dollars.
This was revealed by the Turkish ambassador to Zimbabwe, H.E Hakan Kivanc, during celebrations to mark the 95th Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic of Turkey.
“Total humanitarian aid provided by Turkey in 2017 was around 8 billion US dollars which is nearly 1 percent of our GDP. We still host the highest number of refugees in the world, 3.9 million. We are even hosting the animals of the Alleppo zoo, rescued from the war in Syria,” said Ambassador Kivanc.
He added that Turkey motivated by the motto of Kemal Atatürk, ‘Peace at Home, Peace in the World’, immensely contributes to Peace and Security in Africa through the United Nations.
Speaking about Turkey and Zimbabwe relations, Ambassador Kivanc said the political, economic and cultural relations between the two countries, as well as people to people relations have strengthened over the years.
“I would like to reiterate the strong will of my Government, private sector and NGO’s to support the Government of Zimbabwe in every field.
“We strongly believe that Zimbabwe, blessed with its highly qualified people, wonderful nature and rich resources will very soon overcome the temporary difficulties and continue to attain the development goals set for 2030,” he said.