No water problem in Turkey, minister says

By Zehra Aydin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey no longer suffers from any water problems, the Turkish Forestry and Water Minister said Wednesday.

Veysel Eroglu, during a meeting with Uganda’s Minister of State for Water Ronald Kibuule, said: “We built 451 dams and 1001 reservoirs during the term [of the ruling Justice and Development Party]. Thus, we solved the water problem.”

He added that Turkey had delivered water to more than 1.8 million people in Africa, to support a tree plantation project by a non-governmental organization, the Great Green Wall.

Eroglu said that Turkey was ready to cooperate for the fight against desertification and shortage of water.

Ronald said Uganda wishes to benefit from Turkey’s knowledge in drilling, irrigation and solar energy.

He also thanked President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his visit to Uganda, describing it as an act which had paved the path for future cooperation between the two countries.

Erdogan's visit as part of the eastern African countries’ tour in 2016 was the first trip at the presidential level from Turkey to Uganda.

According to the UN and other aid organizations, more than 11 million people in East Africa are facing starvation due to drought and famine, as ongoing conflict has made farming impossible.