Türkiye-Africa business forum to strengthen partnership

By Mert Davut and Emir Yildirim

ANKARA (AA) — The Türkiye-Africa Business and Economic Forum (TABEF) will be a platform to strengthen the partnership between the two, as the mutual trade volume is expected to exceed $35 billion by the end of the year.

Nail Olpak, chair of the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), told Anadolu that Türkiye’s exports to Africa totaled $14.6 billion and its imports from Africa reached $7.7 billion in the January-August period.

“Machinery, iron and steel, energy, automotive, electrical appliances, plastics, and food products like flour, pastry, and oil came to the fore in Turkish exports to Africa last year, totaling $14.6 billion,” he said. “Energy, automotive, cocoa, agricultural products, and minerals were major imports from Africa last year, reaching $11.3 billion.”

Olpak stated that Türkiye is targeting $40 billion in trade with Africa in the first stage, starting next year, and $50 billion and $70 billion over the subsequent years.

“It is key to increase product diversity and break away from the export structures heavily focusing on countries like Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, and Libya,” he said. “Green energy and infrastructure projects, agriculture and food security, health technologies, digitalization, textiles, and contracting businesses are expected to come to the fore.”

Olpak mentioned that Türkiye built relations with Africa based on a win-win principle, saying that certain items stood out in Türkiye’s strategy plan to develop trade and economic relations with Africa.

“Expanding Turkish Eximbank financing opportunities, promoting free trade and investment incentives, promoting Turkish defense, entering the African contracting services market, and boosting the number and the amount of scholarships granted to African students are some of the prominent items on our agenda. This strategy contributes to Türkiye’s stronger outreach in North Africa. But it is not limited there, as it expands to Sub-Saharan African countries with more competitive Turkish products in the African domestic markets via logistics centers and local production partnerships,” he said.

The Türkiye-Africa Business and Economic Forum will be held on Oct. 16-17 in Istanbul.

“We expect Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and first lady Emine Erdogan, as well as Trade Minister Omer Bolat, to attend the forum, in addition to high-level participation from African countries,” he said.

“The priority sectors of focus at the event will be agriculture and food, renewable energy, mining, automotive, textiles, transportation and logistics, contracting, defense, and digital technologies,” he noted. “Over 4,000 businesspeople from all African countries and Türkiye are expected to participate.”