Turkey is set to construct and donate an embassy building and a plot of land to Somalia at a cost estimated to reach over $6m, according to a deal submitted to the Turkish parliament on Monday, As per the agreement signed between Turkey and Somalia in 2022, Ankara will make this contribution in exchange for a plot of land that the Somali government donated to Turkey in 2015..
Turkish media criticise the government for the project, but sources note the Somali government donated a far larger plot of land in 2015, The diplomatic mission Turkey built on that plot in Mogadishu was its largest worldwide, covering an area of more than 61,000 sqm at a cost of $65m. In return, Somalia is getting 4,918 sqm of land in the Incek diplomatic site in Ankara.
Turkey plans to erect a 3,000 sqm embassy building on this site, and the agreement allows Somalia the right to sell the land and buildings in the future if it wishes, However, the Turkish parliament must ratify the deal before it can proceed, The agreement has already sparked criticism in the Turkish media. Sozcu, the largest opposition daily newspaper, ran a front-page report on Tuesday titled: “There is no saving from the love of Somalia”.
Turkish sources familiar with the project told Middle East Eye that the cost of both the building and the land would not exceed $6m, and it might even be lower, One source emphasised that the land donated to Turkey in Somalia is 12 times more extensive and in a prime location in Mogadishu.
