ANKARA

Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), a state-run aid agency, donated a fully equipped ambulance to Bhutan's Health Ministry, the agency said on Friday.

In a statement from its regional office in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, TIKA said the ambulance was handed over to Bhutan Health Minister Dechen Wangmo in a ceremony in Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan.

“This gift by the Turkish people is very valuable for us... You can be sure that this vehicle will never wait in the park of the ministry, but will bring it to the hospital that will carry many patients in the mountains and in the countryside," Wangmo said at the event, according to the statement.

Mentioning that Bhutan is very mountainous and hilly country where ordinary vehicles can not operate long time, she said that the highest-quality ambulance from Turkey would serve at least 15 years.

A prayer ceremony was also held at the ministry early Thursday where Buddhist clergymen prayed and applauded the donation, she added.

With Turkey's donation, the total number of ambulances in the tiny South Asian nation reached 117.

Wangmo underlined her country always welcomes Turkish support for training of expert doctors.

TIKA's Bangladesh country coordinator Ismail Gundogdu, for his part, vowed to continue Turkey's support to Bhutan.

"We hope that the friendship between the two countries will continue in the future," said Gundogdu.

The Dhaka office is responsible for TIKA's activities in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Maldives.