Turkish aid agency holds 'search and rescue training' for Pakistani scouts

KARACHI, Pakistan

A week-long "advanced search and rescue training program" conducted by Türkiye's state-run Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) for Pakistani scouts concluded on Sunday.

The training, which aimed to train Pakistani scouts to operate in disaster-hit areas, was held in the Karoonjhar mountainous range of the Thar desert in the southern Sindh province.

Over two dozen scouts attended the training, which was organized in cooperation with the Turkish NGO Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) and Sindh Boys Scouts Association (SBSA).

The program was concluded with a certificate ceremony held at the association's provincial headquarters in Karachi.

The ceremony was attended by Turkish Consul General in Karachi Cemal Sangu, Provincial Commissioner of Sindh Scouts Syed Mumtaz Ali Shah, TIKA's Karachi coordinator Halil Ibrahim Basaran, and volunteers who participated in the training.

Addressing the ceremony, Sangu congratulated TIKA and the participants for the "successful" training program, which will help Pakistani volunteers operate more effectively in the event of any natural or man-made disaster.

He said that TIKA, with its 63 offices across the globe, has been operating in different sectors.

"With its two offices in Pakistan and such trainings, it shows how close we hold Pakistan to our hearts, ” he added.

Shah, in his remarks, thanked Türkiye, TIKA, and IHH, saying that such collaborations will help SBSA build its own search and rescue training academy.

Basaran, for his part, appreciated the volunteers and SBSA for their contribution to the successful completion of the training.

He added that TIKA will continue to organize such training programs across the province.

Ahmet Turkmenoglu, the chief trainer from IHH, said the volunteers showed an "extraordinary" performance despite harsh weather conditions.

Habib Uddin, a team leader from SBSA, expressed his gratitude, and said: “If we had received this training earlier, we could have saved more lives in previous disasters in Pakistan.”

The second stage of the training program will continue with urban search and rescue training, as well as search and rescue training in water.

TIKA conducts search and rescue training in different countries, including Bosnia, Lebanon, and Pakistan, under its Emergency and Disaster Response Training Program, which consists of "search and rescue training in nature", "urban search and rescue training," and "search and rescue in water."