Belgian post launches donation campaign for Türkiye

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) – Belgian postal service bpost launched on Thursday a campaign to collect donations for those affected by the Feb. 6 earthquakes in Türkiye.

Between Feb. 21 and March 31, donations can be dropped off at any of the 657 post offices across Belgium that will be transported to Turkish post operator PTT’s logistical center in Istanbul.

“We are joining forces with our Turkish colleagues at PTT, combining our logistics experience to transport and distribute the products the people there are desperately in need of,” company CEO Jos Donvil said in a statement.

One can only bring items on bpost’s list, which has been set in collaboration with the Turkish authorities.

Bpost expects cardboard boxes of a maximum of 10 kg that may contain food, such as conserves, powdered baby milk, cookies, and hygienic items, including baby diapers, toothbrushes, soaps, as well as blankets, sleeping bags, and power banks.

The collections will be sorted and repacked in bpost’s fulfillment center before they are delivered to Türkiye.

Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Petra De Sutter called all on citizens to help, arguing that “every Belgian citizen has a post office nearby.”

“By sending sleeping bags, powdered baby milk or canned food through bpost to the areas affected by the disaster, you are saving lives,” she said.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces.

So far, over 36,000 people have died, tens of thousands have been injured, and more than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes.

Last year, bpost organized a similar campaign to help those affected by the war in Ukraine.