Turkey to open 5 new embassies in Africa

Turkey’s ambassador to the African Union announced yesterday that Ankara is planning to open five embassies in Africa, the Anadolu Agency reported.

During a speech at Addis Ababa University, Fatih Ulusoy said new embassies are set to open in the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Burundi, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

In his lecture “Turkey in Africa: Drivers and incentives of an emerging power”, Ulusoy said this would bring the total number of Turkish embassies on the continent to 44.

Discussing Turkish-Ethiopian relations, the official said there are currently 165 Turkish companies operating in Ethiopia.

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“These companies create jobs for 30,000 Ethiopians,” he said, adding that Turkish investment in Ethiopia stands at nearly $3 billion, accounting for about half of Turkey’s total investment in sub-Saharan Africa.

Turkey started it’s open relations with African nation in 1988. Under Erdogan, Turkey has become the third largest country that offers humanitarian aid to Africa after the US and the UK.