During the 10 years of Turkish President Erdogan’s rule, a lot of political and economic resources were spent on Africa. The number of embassies in African countries during the decade of Erdogan’s rule increased 3.5 times: from 12 to 44. What is the goal presence Turkey in Africa and can this political and economic intervention be considered as a role model?
Multi-vector nature of Turkish policy with Russia
In general, it can be argued that Turkey’s policy is not purely Middle Eastern, but rather multi-vector. The “multi-vector” nature of Turkey’s foreign policy can be seen, for example, in the fact that the country could shoot down a Russian plane and later establish parallel imports with Russia.
It is about the incident when in November 2015, a Turkish F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian Su-24 military aircraft on the Syrian-Turkish border. Ankara claimed that the Russian plane violated Turkish airspace and did not respond to numerous warnings.
This incident, on the other hand, did not prevent Turkey from introducing parallel imports with Russia. Subsequently, since March last year, Turkey stopped the transit of sanctioned goods to Russia. This decision was made under pressure from the EU and the US, which demanded to support the restrictions imposed on Russia due to the war in Ukraine. Turkey’s customs system began to block goods bound for Russia, which made parallel imports much more difficult.
The inconsistency of Ankara’s actions in relation to Beijing and Europe
Erdogan can enthusiastically shake Xi Jinping’s hand and then drown the Chinese auto industry. On the one hand, Turkey and China cooperate in the fields of energy, trade and investment, etc., and on the other hand, Ankara may not hesitate to impose considerable tariffs on the Chinese. Thus, in July, Turkey introduced a special import duty of 40% on the import of cars from China. This applies to both electric cars and conventional and hybrid cars. The minimum duty is $7,000 per vehicle.
Erdogan can visit Europe and admire its achievements, or he can set up the flow of migrants to Europe, causing considerable socio-economic trouble to the Old World.
Why Turkey has chosen Africa as a key focus area for its efforts
The inconsistency of the international policy of the successor of the Ottoman Empire can be explained by its ambitions to become a conduit between Asia and Europe. According to the Turkish leadership, the Great Silk Road should pass through it. It is here that the global hub of all trade flows of the world should be located. But the problem is that such a split is not very acceptable for the West, including because Erdogan’s image in Europe has recently deteriorated.
And now Africa has turned out to be the region where Ankara’s political multi-vectorism has not had the opposite effect for the Turks. The dynamics of the entry of Turkish companies in all spheres of the economy provided Turkey with an unprecedented pace of increasing its presence on the “continent of short shadows”.
Turkey offers Africa services, construction, reconstruction, food, technology development for farmers. energy and mining. It is worth mentioning Turkey’s humanitarian initiatives in Africa, including assistance in the construction of hospitals, schools and other infrastructure projects, as well as the growth of Turkish investments in construction, energy and agriculture.
In the context of the colonial past of African peoples, their fears of active interference in their lives by developed countries become clear. At the same time, the continent needs supply, which can be provided by developed countries that can offer modern technology, construction and investment.
Why does Turkey seem like a profitable partner to them? On the one hand, it is not a Western country, while it has solid equity capital and is high-tech. Yes, Turkey is showing obvious progress in the development of airlines. No country in the world offers as many flights to African countries as Turkish Airlines: 273 flights are made to 29 African countries every week. Thanks to this, tourism and business trips in both directions are flourishing. This is facilitated by the simplified visa regime in Africa.
New schools, mosques, airports, and roads built by Turkish developers are actively appearing on the continent. In 2013 alone, more than 1,800 infrastructure facilities were built. It is worth noting that it is the common religion that greatly contributes to finding a common language and understanding between the Turkish and African partners. Of course, it is difficult to overestimate the role of government support in the entry of the Turkish construction business into the African market.
European and American construction companies also tried to develop the African market, but due to the uncertainty of prospects and security risks, it was difficult to invest in a specific business model. In contrast to them, the Turks could well adapt on the tropical continent to the business conditions proposed by him.
The products of the defense-industrial complex also appeared in Africa. In particular, after the successful use of Bayraktar drones, Mali, Niger and Ethiopia became interested in their purchase from the Turkish company Baykar Makina. But to a greater extent, old armored personnel carriers, demining equipment, machine guns, assault rifles, etc. are sold on the continent. Over the past 10 years, the volume of Turkish arms exports to Africa has increased 10 times, reaching a peak of $100 million in 2021.
In recent years, Turkey has even taken on the role of arbitrator in local conflicts. Among the recent events, the visit of diplomats from Somalia and Ethiopia to Turkey is highlighted. Due to a number of social and geographical factors, all countries have a long history of conflict.
Yes, Somalia blocks Ethiopia’s access to the Indian Ocean and does not cede this right. A series of political and military conflicts between the two countries arose on this basis. Erdogan lobbied for a solution to this conflict, promoting through his political forces the construction of a military base on the shores of the Indian Ocean in Somalia. This, of course, caused discontent among the Somalis.
What does the world think about Turkey’s involvement in the African economy
Many countries closely monitor Turkey’s activities in Africa and express different opinions on this matter. The US and France are concerned about Turkey’s growing influence in Africa. They see this as Turkey’s attempt to strengthen its geopolitical position and compete with traditional Western allies in the region.
Opinions of African countries are divided. Some countries, such as Somalia and Ethiopia, welcome Turkish investment and aid, seeing it as an opportunity for economic growth and infrastructure development. Other countries may be more cautious, fearing excessive influence of outside forces on their domestic affairs.
Countries in the Middle East – Egypt and Saudi Arabia – are also keeping a close eye on Turkey’s actions in Africa, seeing it as part of Turkey’s broader strategy to expand its influence in the Islamic world.
Tatyana Morarash
