Turkey continues to address famine-hit Somalia’s needs

Turkey continues to address famine-hit Somalia's needs

26 September 2011, Monday / TODAY'S ZAMAN WITH WIRES, İSTANBUL

Turkey has not wavered in its humanitarian support for Somalia, implementing initiatives to clean the streets of Mogadishu and to provide water to the famine-afflicted country.

The Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay) began a trash collection project, whereby volunteers collected trash and cleaned the streets of Somalia's capital Mogadishu, according to the Anatolia new agency. The chairman of Kızılay in Somalia, Kemal Pehlivanli, told Anatolia that the trash collection campaign was begun so that the residents of Mogadishu can become used to contributing to keeping their city clean. A truck has been leased to collect trash, and the local authorities showed Kızılay where the trash bags can be dumped. Meanwhile, Turkey is working to find a solution to Somalia's long-standing water problem. The chairman of Turkey's State Waterworks Authority's (DSI) Department of Geotechnical Services and Underground Water, Kemal Karakuş, told Anatolia correspondents that his organization came to Mogadishu under a project of the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA). "We are planning to dig a well near the tent city erected by the Red Crescent. We will begin drilling as soon as our equipment arrives," he said. Karakuş added: "Average life expectancy in Somalia is around 45 years because of severe shortages of food and water. If we can dig wells, life expectancy can increase."