ISTANBUL 

Turkey’s defense sector is contributing to the production of protective masks and ventilators essential in the fight against COVID-19, said an official on Friday.

Yasin Akdere, general manager of the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation, said all kinds of masks, including N95 required by healthcare personnel, are produced in the factories.

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Turkey’s National Defense Ministry produces ten million masks per week

Production of masks as protective equipment for health personnel continues 24/7 

“We produce 6.5 million masks every week in our factories. This is complemented by our military sewing workshops to take the figure to 10 million,” he said, adding they are of top-notch quality.

Akdere said besides the masks, they produced 334,825 medical overalls, 33,210 protective glasses, 377,100 surgical gloves, and 41,400 liters of disinfectant.

Stressing the fatal symptoms of the virus such as severe shortness of breath, Akdere said the global pandemic has increased the need for ventilators, resulting in fresh impetus across the globe to research and manufacture the devices. 

Akdere said due to the rising demands, they produced a prototype for an indigenous ventilator and presented it to the defense minister.

“We plan to start mass production next month. We have the capacity to produce 500 ventilators every week,” he said.

He went on to say that after meeting domestic demands the ventilators will address the needs of Turkey’s allies.

The virus has spread to 185 countries and regions since emerging in China last December. More than 2.72 million cases have been reported worldwide, with the death toll above 191,200, according to data compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.

*Writing by Fahri Aksut