THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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17 September 2021, Ankara – A stakeholders meeting was held yesterday to launch the fourth phase of the Project: “Promoting sustainable employment and income generation opportunities for Syrian refugees and host communities”, funded by the Government of Japan.
The objective of the meeting was to provide implementing partners with necessary guidelines and best practices to ensure successful implementation of the project. Attendees included representatives from FAO, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Provincial Directorates of Bursa and Manisa, and the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality.
The meeting was opened by FAO Programme Officer, Sheikh Ahaduzzaman, who thanked all the attendees and wished the implementing partners a successful partnership. “This meeting will provide not only information about effective implementation of the project but also opportunities to exchange ideas and experiences”, he said.
Burak Gresinli, EU expert at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, enlarged on the project’s importance, noting that “this project, we believe, will play a significant role in facilitating women’s access to employment and reliable income opportunities.”
The event involved a series of engaging discussions covering the project’s prospects and individual plans for the different implementing partners involved. The meeting also included presentations on the selection of beneficiaries, previous impact assessment results, entrepreneurship and cooperative management, project data management and monitoring, and visibility.
The Food Security Officer of the Subregional Office for Central Asia, Keigo Obara, closed the event, noting that: “there are many challenges when we support cooperatives due to the complex legal issues and the involvement of Syrian refugees as members. FAO has accumulated experience in cooperative development in Turkey, and we will continue to collaborate closely with implementing partners to find solutions.”
The project aims to strengthen the resilience and socio-economic integration of Syrian under Temporary Protection and Turkish host communities. In particular, it will help the most vulnerable Syrian refugees and Turkish citizens from host communities gain new income sources in the agrifood sector, which shows strong growth prospects despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The project will be implemented in partnership with the Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry in Bursa, Manisa, as well as the Ankara and Izmir Metropolitan Municipalities under the Syrian Refugee Resilience Plan.
