MOGADISHU, Somalia

Somalia Thursday lauded Türkiye for its “unwavering support” and robust diplomatic relations. 

The Horn of Africa country honored Turkish Ambassador to Somalia Alper Aktas and Director of Turkish Red Crescent Somalia Serif Simsek with certificates of recognition for their services during a ceremony in Mogadishu.

During the ceremony, the head of Somali National Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA), Mohamud Moalim, expressed Somalia’s gratitude to Türkiye, and the Turkish people for their generous support and robust diplomatic relations, the agency said in a statement.

Earlier this month, Somalia trained around 200 staff members of the Somali National Disaster Management Agency with the help of Türkiye.

The month-long training program was held at Mogadishu Somali Türkiye Training and Research Hospital in the capital, which is also known as Erdogan Hospital.

Türkiye, a close ally of Somalia, has invested in its education, infrastructure and health and provided it extensive humanitarian aid.

Türkiye has the largest overseas military facility in Mogadishu to train the Somali National Army.