President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to building a long-term economic and strategic partnership with Africa, closing the 2025 Türkiye–Africa Business and Economic Forum (TABEF) in Istanbul with a powerful message of unity and collaboration.
Quoting an African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together”, President Erdoğan underscored Türkiye’s vision of shared growth, stressing that the forum laid the groundwork for new collaborations and lasting partnerships.
Strengthening Ties with Africa
Reflecting on Türkiye’s evolving relationship with the continent, Erdoğan said:
“In 2005, we declared the Year of Africa. Our relationships have moved to unimaginable heights and have become strategic partnerships.”
He highlighted his personal engagement with the continent, saying he had visited Africa “more than 50 times, length and breadth,” and expressed a sense of solidarity and kinship:
“Our skin colours may be different, but the colour of our tears is the same. I felt at home in every African country I visited.”
Türkiye’s Economic Confidence
On Türkiye’s growing global economic stature, Erdoğan noted that as of 2024, the country ranks 17th in the world by nominal GDP, 12th globally in PPP, and 5th in Europe.
“What we have accomplished in the last 23 years is a guarantee of what we will do in the future,” he declared.
He emphasised that Türkiye’s economic progress, green transformation, and digitalisation position it as an ideal partner for Africa’s own industrial and technological growth.
A Partnership Built on Equality
Distancing Türkiye from the legacy of colonialism, Erdoğan affirmed:
“We do not have the guilt of colonialism on our conscience.”
He pledged that Türkiye would work with Africa on equal footing and serve as an economic bridge linking the continent to global value chains through Türkiye’s access to European markets and industrial base.
Shared Opportunities and Next Steps
Türkiye’s Trade Minister Ömer Bolat highlighted areas of mutual opportunity — including agriculture, construction, digital technologies, and textiles — emphasising that both sides could benefit from deepened cooperation.
Erdoğan invited African investors to use Türkiye as a strategic hub, describing the country’s economy as “globally integrated and digitally enabling.”
He said Africa and Türkiye were now “co-architects of each other’s futures.”
By the close of the forum, several bilateral dialogues and memoranda of understanding had been signed, signalling concrete steps toward scaling up value-added manufacturing, infrastructure development, and joint ventures.
Toward a Shared Future
President Erdoğan’s closing remarks captured the essence of the forum — a shift from transactional partnerships to a strategic alliance grounded in mutual respect and ambition.
Türkiye’s rise into the world’s top-20 economies, coupled with its open invitation to Africa to “walk the journey together,” marks a defining moment in Türkiye–Africa relations, where both regions look to the future as equal partners in progress.
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