Trade between Algeria and Turkey has exceeded $5 billion, according to the Algerian government. In the coming years, the two countries hope to increase the value of these trade exchanges by signing agreements in new sectors.
Algeria plans to increase its trade with Turkey and bring it to $10 billion in the medium term, Algeria Press Service (APS) reported, citing the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During a press conference with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan (photo, right), on the occasion of a working visit to Turkey, Ahmed Attaf (photo, left), Algerian Minister of Foreign Affairs declared that โAlgeria has become Turkey’s second trading partner in Africa with bilateral trade exceeding $5 [billion, editor’s note], and the leading destination for Turkish direct investments whose current value exceeds $6 [billion, editor’s note] โ.
He also indicated that these trends make Turkey the country’s โfirst non-hydrocarbon foreign investorโ. Indeed, the Ottoman Empire has nearly 1,500 companies covering various sectors of activity with more than 30,000 guaranteed jobs, he added.
This working visit comes as a prelude to the second session of the Algerian-Turkish Joint Planning Commission which will be held during the visit to Algeria of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “very soon”, indicated the press agency.
This session will be an opportunity for Algiers and Ankara to sign several agreements in several multi-sectoral areas, including trade, investment, energy, education and culture.
โIn addition to important sectors such as metallurgy, steel, textiles, construction and public works (BTP) which have made the main bilateral successes, the Algerian-Turkish economic partnership now extends to new sectors, like renewable energies, mines, Saharan agriculture and the pharmaceutical industry,โ said Mr. Attaf.
It should be noted that this ambition to increase trade between these two countries is not recent. Indeed, in 2018, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also mentioned it, putting forward the same aspirations raised.