Tanzania top client of Turkish contractor services

Tuba Sahin

ISTANBUL

Tanzania was the top market for Turkish contractor services in 2017, making it the first ever African country the biggest client for the Turkish construction sector, head of a Turkish foreign trade body said Friday.

"Turkish constructors have undertaken projects worth of $3.1 billion in Tanzania last year and the country left behind Turkey's traditional markets such as Russia, Turkmenistan, Libya, and Saudi Arabia," said Nail Olpak, the chairman of the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey said.

Turkish constructors developed 241 projects worth of $14.7 billion in 2017, Olpak told a session of a business and economic forum meeting between Turkey and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Istanbul.

He said Mozambique was also among the top ten countries to receive the lion's share from the Turkish construction sector.

Also speaking at the event, Selim Bora, the chairman of the Turkish conglomerate Summa, said that businesspeople should be perceptive of the needs of the African countries in order to achieve success in the continent.

"Africa is open for investment especially in construction," Bora said, adding "vision, enthusiasm, risk taking, willingness, operational readiness, dedication, and honesty” were key to success there.