TİKA Provides Infrastructure Support to Iraq

Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) continues to lend a helping hand to Iraq from Turkey though the projects it implements.

TİKA has been carrying out important work for the reconstruction of the damaged infrastructure in Iraq, which has been destroyed by the terrorist organization ISIS, in order to establish public services, accelerate returns to the region, and revitalize the commercial life of the city.

In a statement made on Twitter, Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy expressed that TİKA had been active in Iraq since 2004 and continued to implement several projects in all the necessary areas, including education, health, agricultural development, institutional capacity building, food aid, and the promotion of peace.  Minister Ersoy announced that in line with the instructions of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, TİKA would renovate Bridge Number 4, which connects the east and west of the city and was destroyed during the war, with the aim of reconstructing the city and revitalizing commercial life.

Since 2014, most of the infrastructure has become unusable in the city of Mosul, which has been subjected to ISIS attacks, and bridges built on the Tigris river which connects the eastern and western sides of the city have been destroyed by the terrorist organization. Upon the instructions of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, TİKA will repair the 4-legged bridge with a length of 648 meters and a width of 32.45 meters on the Tigris river in Mosul in order to consolidate the deeply rooted friendship between Turkey and the Republic of Iraq, facilitate the transportation within the city of Mosul that houses a dense Turkmen population, and accelerate the return of people to the region. TİKA Acting President Serkan Kayalar signed an agreement for the restoration of the bridge by TİKA. Project planning was initiated following the signing of the agreement. After the planning, activities will be started for the renovation of the bridge.

TİKA's efforts to restore the Kayseri Bazaar in Kirkuk, which became unusable following the fire at the end of last year, and the tomb of Sheikh Abdulkadir Geylani, one of the most important values of the Islamic world, in Baghdad, are underway at full speed. The project planning for the restoration of the Abu Hanifa Complex, which is an important historical value in the region, has been completed.

Alongside its efforts to pass down mutual historical and cultural heritage to future generations through restoration, TİKA continues to lend a helping hand from Turkey to Iraq by providing food aid to the people affected by natural disasters and terror in various regions of Iraq.