Mali offers many investment opportunities

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA

Turkey and Mali are seeking to boost bilateral economic relations through a "win-win" approach as there are plenty of investment opportunities in the West African country.

Malian Promotion of Investment and Private Sector Minister Baber Gano told Anadolu Agency that Mali presented great opportunities for Turkish investors in various sectors such as agriculture, energy and healthcare which are vital for the country's development.

"Turkey can help us about energy generation and transmission which are priorities for us as all of our industry sectors suffer from it," Gano said.

Gano said they expected an investment protection agreement to be signed during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Mali.

"We hope President Erdogan will help us with Mali's development projects," Gano said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is currently on a four-nation African tour, which includes Algeria, Mauritania, Mali as well as the West African country of Senegal.

Birahim Soumare, Mali's ambassador in Ankara, also said the visit constituted a "historical event" for Mali.

Turkish businesses can contribute to Mali's economic development through a win-win approach, Soumare said.

"History showed us that other nations came here to exploit but Turks did not," Soumare said.

Fatih Altunbas, the head of the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK) Turkey-Mali Business Council, highlighted that land for agriculture, especially to grow high-quality cotton, was available in Mali.

"Businesspeople operating in the textile sector can import high-quality cotton from Mali or can invest in the country to be able to export yarn from there," Altunbas said.

Altunbas added that Mali suffered from an electricity shortage of 600 megawatts and therefore was waiting for investors to close the gap.

He noted that although the livestock sector was developed in Mali, the country did not have slaughterhouses and was unable to process leather.

President Erdogan's visit will accelerate the increase of the trade volume between both countries, Altunbas said.

Mamadou Baba Sylla, vice president of the Mali Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said Turkey came to the continent to create added value not to exploit Africa's resources.

"Mali always welcomes Turks to see investment opportunities through a win-win approach," he said.

Over a decade, the trade volume between Turkey and Mali rose eight-fold to reach $82.1 million in 2017, according to Turkish Statistical Institute data compiled by Anadolu Agency.

Turkish exports to Mali reached $52.2 million while imports from the country stood at $29.9 million in 2017.

Cotton constituted 99.3 percent of Turkey's total imports from Mali, according to TurkStat.