Somali President Hasan Şeyh Mahmud said that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Somalia in 2011 started a new era in the relations between the two countries. Mahmud drew attention to the support Türkiye provides to Somalia in the fields of education, health, security and natural resources development, as well as humanitarian aid.
“IT GAINED A DIFFERENT DIMENSION WITH ERDOĞAN'S VISIT"
Speaking at the program held at the Presidential Palace on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of President Erdoğan's visit to Somalia, Mahmud stated that the relations between Türkiye and Somalia have a long history.
Mahmud said that aid was delivered from many countries when Somalia was experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis in 2011, but Türkiye's approach towards Somalia gained a different dimension with Erdogan's visit.
Reminding that Erdoğan, as the then prime minister, came to Somalia with a delegation consisting of his wife, children, ministers and members of parliament, Mahmud said, "They did not just meet with the administrators and return. He stopped the car on the road and chatted with the children playing there." he said.
Mahmud stated that Erdoğan gave instructions to build schools and hospitals after the visit, and said that the schools and hospitals built by Türkiye are shown as examples in the region as well as in Somalia.
“I WILL NOT DIE ON ANY DAY OTHER THAN THE DAY I DIE”
Explaining Erdoğan's determination to visit refugee camps in Somalia, Mahmud said that despite warnings that going to the region was risky for security reasons, Erdoğan said, "Take me there, I will not die on any other day than the day I die." he said.
Stating that Erdoğan visited the camps with his wife Emine Erdoğan and met with children, Mahmud stated that this visit did not only mean delivering humanitarian aid, but also gave morale and hope to people in difficult situations.
Stating that Türkiye also made a significant contribution to the development of Somalia's human resources, Mahmud noted that Somali young people were sent to Türkiye for secondary and higher education.
TURKEY'S SUPPORT TO SOMALIA'S NATURAL RESOURCES
Mahmud also touched upon the support provided by Türkiye in the exploration of Somalia's natural resources.
In the past, “We have the resources, but do we have the budget and skills to extract them?” Stating that they thought, Mahmud said that seismic research and drilling ships came to Somalia with the support of Türkiye.
Somali President stated that Türkiye's support in the field of security has also produced important results in the fight against terrorism.
Reminding that Somalia has been fighting against the terrorist organization Al-Shabaab since 2007, Mahmud stated that in the early periods, African Union forces fought together with the Somali army and Al-Shabaab was expelled from Mogadishu.
Mahmud stated that Somali security forces have achieved significant gains in the fight against terrorism, thanks to the training and equipment support provided by Türkiye, and said, "Turkey both trains our soldiers and provides them with the tools they need. This has changed a lot in terms of both our security and our fight against the terrorist organization Al-Shabab." he said.
“HE TAUGHT ME HOW TO FISH”
Emphasizing that Türkiye's support to Somalia is not limited to financial aid only, Mahmud said:
"Türkiye's support to Somalia was not to give fish, but to teach them how to fish. They could have given us the money for the investment of millions of dollars. We would have used it up and needed it again tomorrow. Currently, our own personnel are being trained for oil. As a result, Türkiye taught us how to fish."
Mahmud stated that the economic relations between Turkey and Somalia are gradually developing and said, "Our relations are increasing day by day. Yesterday it was aid, then infrastructure, security and economy. Tomorrow it will be an even stronger partnership." he said.
Somali President: "Thank you to the whole world, but thank you to Türkiye in a very different way." he said.
PEOPLE TIES BETWEEN Türkiye AND SOMALIA ARE STRENGTHENING
Stating that Türkiye's support to Somalia should not be evaluated only within the scope of interstate relations, Mahmud expressed the gratitude of the Somali people to Türkiye and the Turkish people.
Saying that the relations between the two countries also strengthen the ties between peoples, Mahmud expressed his satisfaction with the upbringing of young people who speak Turkish and know Turkish culture in Somalia.
Mahmud stated that Somali youth who wanted to prepare discussion programs in Turkish visited him, and noted that it was planned to broadcast these programs in Türkiye and for Somali youth to express their gratitude to the Turkish people.
Mahmud said, “The understanding and merging of the Somali people and the Turkish people is a great thing for us in terms of history.” he said.
