UN Technology Bank Meets with Government of Türkiye in Ankara

Tweet

Blog by Deodat Maharaj

2 May 2024

Just two days ago, my staff and I had the opportunity to engage with a range of key stakeholders on the work of UN Technology Bank. The UN Technology Bank has as its remit the leveraging of science, technology and innovation to help fast-track development in the world’s poorest countries or the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Türkiye is the host country of the UN Technology Bank and has been a big supporter of this relatively new UN institution.

      Meeting with Deputy Minister of MoFA Ambassador H.E. Mehmet Kemal Bozbay 

During the mission to Ankara, constructive engagements were held with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Chair of the Governing Council of UN Technology Bank; the President of the Turkish Development Agency or TIKA; and other partners.

It was good to see the strong commitment and reaffirmation of support by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador H.E. Mehmet Kemal Bozbay to our institution. The discussions on how to leverage technology and knowledge sharing to support Least Development Countries was the focus of the discussions including deepening the collaboration between UN Technology Bank and the Government of Türkiye.

The visit to TIKA and meeting with its President was valuable in providing insights on the important work done by Türkiye in so many of the poorest countries on the planet. Projects ranged from the construction of education and medical facilities to capacity building. Once again, there was full agreement that by working together, TIKA and the UN Technology Bank can deliver results for LDCs.

Having just joined the UN Technology Bank, the discussions with Professor Mandal who is the President of The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK), and Chairman of our Governing Council were both productive and forward looking. I was pleased to see his continued strong commitment to our work and so generously agreeing to share the experience and expertise of Türkiye to help transform the development trajectory of the poorest countries on earth.

UN Technology Bank Team meeting with the President of The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK) and His Team

I left Ankara heartened with this strong partnership we have with the Government of Türkiye. I look forward to working with other partners to deliver results, where they matter, on the ground and in the lives of people in the poorest counties on this planet. They deserve nothing less.