TİKA's Erenler Sofrası is in Bosnia and Herzegovina

As part of the Erenler Sofrası Ramadan Program, Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) distributed aid packages consisting of food and hygiene supplies to 1,000 needy families in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The “Erenler Sofrası” Ramadan Program, which has been initiated by TİKA after the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey declared 2021 as the Year of Yunus Emre and Turkish Language, the Year of Haji Bektash Veli and the Year of Ahi Evran, has reached out a helping hand for the needy people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

As part of TİKA's “Erenler Sofrası” Ramadan Program, food and hygiene packages were delivered to a total of 1,000 needy families who live in Tuzla, Srebrenica, Central Bosnia (Vitez), Livno (Glamoč and Kupres), Sarajevo and the Serb Entity (Bosanska Kostajnica, Prijedor, Doboj, Teslic, Kotor Varos, Bosanski Samac, Modrica, Prnjavor and Derventa).

The food and hygiene packages were distributed by TİKA in cooperation with the Bosnia and Herzegovina Islamic Union, the Mercy Association, Bolja Buducnost Romani Women's Association, and the Jacanje Zuralipe Romani Association. The handover ceremony, which has been organized by complying with the pandemic measures, was attended by Oğuz Kılıç, Consul General of Turkey in Banja Luka; Kenan Vrbanjac, President of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mercy Association; Muhammed Ünal, TİKA’s Sarajevo Coordinator; and the families.

Having taken the floor during the handover ceremony, Oğuz Kılıç, Consul General of Turkey in Banja Luka, stated that thanks to its strong tradition of humanitarian aid which was a legacy of its history and culture, Turkey has been sending humanitarian aid to needy people all around the world. Kılıç said: “We are showing serious effort to help our brothers and sisters in Bosnia and Herzegovina in every aspect.”

Kenan Vrbanjac, President of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mercy Association who began his speech by expressing his gratitude towards Turkish people for their support, stated that it was important that the needy people have not been forgotten despite the COVID-19 pandemic and that TİKA has been carrying out this mission thanks to the Ramadan programs that have been organized every year.

TİKA’s Sarajevo Coordinator Muhammed Ünal, on the other hand, expressed that Turkey has been reaching out a helping hand to needy people all around the world in the month of Ramadan, in which an atmosphere of solidarity and sharing has always been prevalent. Ünal also reminded that the year 2021 was declared by the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey as the “Year of Yunus Emre and Turkish”, the “Year of Haji Bektash Veli” and the “Year of Ahi Evran”, and that within this context, the Ramadan projects and activities in 2021 has been organized under the name “Erenler Sofrası”, which was inspired by these assets who were seen as the heart of Anatolia. Lastly, Ünal added that 25 tonnes of aid packages consisting of food and hygiene supplies have been delivered to 5,000 needy people all around Bosnia and Herzegovina.