The last quarter of 2021 was a very busy period in the ever-growing Turkey-Africa relationship – both on the diplomatic and economic fronts. From December 16th to 18th, the third edition of the Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit was held in Istanbul. The high-level event was attended by several African presidents as well as leading figures from the African Union as part of a broader plan to deepen the diplomatic bond between the two sides.
This event followed the very successful Turkey-Africa Economic and Business Forum which also brought together business leaders and policymakers from both sides to discuss ways to deepen the economic relations, specifically, in the areas of trade, investment, technology and logistics.
For many in Africa the sudden emergence of Turkey as a key player and partner to many countries on the continent came as a shock, given the fact that Turkey is comparatively a newcomer as far as key partners to Africa is concerned. The essence of this write-up is to trace the historical evolution of the Turkey-Africa relationship as well as factors that have led to the swift growth in the economic and diplomatic relations.
THE EARLY YEARS
As the Turkish Republic emerged from the fading Ottoman Empire, the country’s early leaders successfully prioritised building very strong diplomatic and economic relations with Europe. Over time however, rapid changes in the global order meant that the country had to revise its foreign policy framework to enable it keep up with the changing times and the new world economic order, especially, in view of its own expanding economy and diplomatic influence. In 1998, a major Africa Action Plan was adopted to guide Turkey’s policy toward building strong relations with Africa.
However, it wasn’t until 2005 that the Turkish Government really began its major push toward actionising its plans by declaring that year the ‘Year of Africa’. Since 2010, the Turkish rapprochement has been very evident as the success of its overall policy has become more and more evident across the length and breadth of the continent.
TURKEY IN AFRICA
Turkey’s approach to building a comprehensive relationship with Africa is unique, in that, the policy focuses on building a holistic, long-term partnership with all African countries without discrimination. The goal is to achieve a mutually beneficial, win-win diplomatic and economic partnership with all African countries. This is very evident in Turkey’s diplomatic presence across the continent. Turkey has increased the number of its embassies from just 12 in 2003 to 43 by 2021.
Aside from the direct diplomatic presence as indicated above, Turkey’s presence on the continent is also heavily felt in the extraordinary work being done by Turkish public and private NGOs across Africa. Organisations such as TIKA (Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency), DEIK (The Foreign Economic Relations Board), Maarif Foundation Schools, Yunus Emre Institute, Anadolu Agency, Diyanet Foundation and others have done lots of good work in various sectors – from education, humanitarian support as well as investment and trade promotion across the continent.
In Ghana for instance the wonderful efforts and investments by the Hudai Foundation in building the incredible Ghana National Mosque Complex, which is now a major national treasure and tourist destination in Accra, is a major testament to the strong relations between Ghana and Turkey over the years.
Furthermore, Turkey’s interest and presence in Africa is also heavily symbolised by the number of visits by Turkey’s top diplomats to various parts of the continent. It is instructive to note that over the last two decades or so, during the tenure of Turkey’s President Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first as Prime Minister and later President, he has personally visited over 30 African countries, including Somalia, when it was totally destroyed by war and shunned completely by the international community as a failed state. No other foreign leader can rival this record.
Naturally, these visits have been duly reciprocated by African leaders as well. Indeed, our own former President John Mahama visited Turkey in 2013 – a visit that really invigorated our growing relationship. Even more importantly, these visits have deepened the diplomatic and economic relations between the two sides and propelled Turkey as a major alternative to the major Western and Asian powers vying for the attention of the African continent.
The Effect of the Turkish Presence in Africa
The direct effects of Turkey’s long-term, holistic foreign policy strategy for Africa is now very visible across the length and breadth of the continent. It is especially visible in the massive growth of the trade and economic relationship between the two sides. Total trade volume which stood at a mere US$5.4 billion in 2003 jumped to US$25.3 billion by the end of 2020. This trend is also very evident in the economic relationship between Ghana and Turkey.
Our total trade volume which was just under US$175m in 2009, soared to a record US$771m at the end of 2020 – even with the effects of the pandemic. Indeed, the target is to get that number to hit $US1 billion in the very near future. In terms of investments, several Turkish companies currently operate in various sectors of our economy. These companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars into our economy and employ thousands of Ghanaians.
Turkish goods such as building materials, clothing accessories, machinery and equipment as well as food products and many more abound in many African countries. The combination of superior quality as compared to goods from majority of Asia, and affordable pricing as compared to goods manufactured in Europe and the US have made made-in-Turkey products very attractive to the ever-growing middle class in Africa.
In the area of defense as well, Turkey’s influence in Africa is growing by the day. In the last few years, Turkey has emerged as a strong manufacturer of various state-of-the art military artillery that has drawn international attention. These developments have not gone unnoticed by African partners. Indeed, according to a UN report on African arms sales, Ghana is one of several African countries who recently acquired wheeled armoured personnel carriers from Turkey. Other countries such as Chad, Senegal, Burkina Faso and Mauritania were also mentioned in that transaction.
Algeria, Nigeria, Rwanda and Tunisia are all among a number of African countries that have recently acquired various defense installations from top Turkish defense manufacturers. Kenya, for instance, very recently signed a high-profile deal with Turkish manufacturer Katmerciler, for the supply of 118 armoured vehicles.
The growth of Turkey-Africa relations has benefited Africa significantly over the years. As already indicated, Ghana and many other African countries have benefitted greatly from substantial investments by Turkish companies and NGOs. Turkey is also a major import destination for African exports as well. For instance, in Ghana’s case, data indicates our exports to Turkey for the year 2020 shot up by an astonishing 188% over that of 2019, rising from US$102m to US$294m. Many other African countries are taking advantage of the Turkish market to expand their exports. Thus, creating a strong alternative to the traditional Western markets.
The Role of Soft Power
Soft power has always been an integral part of international diplomacy. In its quest to build and maintain a long-term mutually beneficial relationship with the African continent, Turkey has expertly deployed its unique brand of soft power very effectively. Turkey’s very rich history and incredibly diverse culture, religious tolerance and crucially, its historical opposition of colonisation makes it a very unique country. These traits have allowed Turkey to easily befriend a multitude of countries with widely diverse cultures and languages across the length and breadth of the African continent.
As already indicated in this missive, public and private Turkish NGOs operate in many parts of the continent, providing much needed humanitarian services and helping many vulnerable people in different African countries. This has brought a lot of goodwill to the country. However, the biggest promoter of Turkey in Africa is most likely Turkish Airlines.
The carrier made its first flight to Africa in 1956 and now flies to about 61 different destinations in Africa. This makes the carrier the unparalled leader in the industry in terms of the number of destinations it flies to on the continent – a true giant of the African skies. Indeed, for many Africans, their first interaction with Turkish culture is by eating Turkish delight on their first trip on a Turkish Airlines flight.
The sheer brand awareness Turkish Airlines creates for Turkey on the continent beyond being the primary connection between the two sides is invaluable. Crucially, its widespread flight routes has also made Turkey incredibly accessible to many Africans. No wonder more and more Africans are now choosing to visit Turkey for various reasons – business, studies, leisure, and even to seek worl- class medical care.
Another important soft power strategy that is bringing Turkey ever closer to the African continent is education. In the past, many young Africans looked forward to moving to the West, and often to former colonial powers to further their studies. However, over the last decade or so, a lot of young Africans have discovered the many benefits of tapping into the world-class education Turkish universities offer.
This is largely thanks to the hard work of the YTB, the agency responsible for running the very successful Turkish Government Scholarships, undoubtedly one of the most comprehensive scholarship schemes currently available as indicated earlier. The YTB has given scholarship assistance to a total of 3,029 students across the African continent between 2012 and 2021.
Currently, there are around 40,000 African students from 54 countries studying in both public and private universities in Turkey. A third of this number is female, and 20% of them are enrolled in postgraduate studies. Furthermore, a total of 220 academics from 24 African countries also work in several Turkish universities, according to Erol Ozvar, president of Turkish Council of Higher Education.
These graduates play a very unique role in sustaining the Turkey-Africa relationship. Many of them speak fluent Turkish and are very fond of Turkish food and culture. They thus return home and become unofficial ambassadors of Turkey and encourage many of their friends and family to visit or interact with Turkey in one way or the other.
Another interesting factor that has added another dimension to the growth in interest and appreciation for Turkish culture on the continent is the amazing rise of Turkish TV series in many parts of the continent. In Ghana, Turkish series haven’t yet gained strong popularity yet, however, the case is completely different in many parts of the continent. For instance, the popular Turkish drama ‘Dirilis Erturgrul’, was a monster hit in Nigeria and many Eastern and Northern African countries. Same applies to many other hit Turkish series. What these dramas do is cause people to become curious about finding out more about Turkey.
CONCLUSION
The great success of Turkey’s Africa strategy is testament to the brilliance of long-term strategic planning and strong policy coherence and leadership on the part of Turkey’s leaders over the years. It also highlights that we Africans respond better to partnerships in the spirit of mutual benefit as most African countries mature in their political and economic developments.
Turkey has currently positioned itself firmly as a powerful alternative and ally of the continent. In light of the economic upheavals unleashed especially by the changing global political dynamics and COVID-19, African countries should endeavour to expand their economic and development partners as much as possible to survive and even thrive in this new world order. This is especially true for fast developing countries like Ghana. It is crucial that we analyse our economic relations with emerging powers like Turkey to figure how we can fully leverage and maximise the relationship to ensure that we profit fully. This will be crucial in realising the economic dreams we have as a country.
The writer is the Founder, turkafriq.com
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @AboagyeTmintah
LinkedIn: Aboagye T. Mintah
