How did Khartoum Bureaucracy Waste Ankara’s Billions?

Sudan Events – Abdul Basset Idris

(The Sudan Events) opens the file of Sudanese-Turkish relations, so that we can see the extent of the opportunities wasted by Sudan, which was granted to it by the excellence of its relations with Turkey during the era of the two presidents, Al-Bashir and Erdogan, and how the transitional government led by Hamdouk was unable to manage these large interests.
Visit and significance:
Erdogan’s last visit to Sudan, during the era of former President Omar Al-Bashir, was an attempt to save the last opportunity to establish giant economic projects. The strong political and diplomatic relationship that was established between Khartoum and Ankara succeeded in convincing the Turkish government of its giant companies and businessmen to work in Khartoum. Sudan, until now, and according to climate standards. The international investment environment is an unattractive in this area, yet it has been able to obtain Turkish loans and investment offers worth billions of dollars.
Start of take-off:
The development of economic relations between Sudan and Turkey was a natural matter in light of the development and prosperity of political and diplomatic relations, and since the beginning of the nineties, through trade exchange in partnership between some Turkish companies and a limited number of Sudanese businessmen, exporting the commodities “sesame” and “gum arabic” from Sudan.
In 1994, a Turkish company agreed with the government of the capital, Khartoum, to implement a sewage network project in the capital. But this project was not implemented and mystery still surrounds it.
Traders Login:
During that era, small investments arose for a number of Turkish merchants in the field of furniture, decoration, refractory brick manufacturing, and importing modern Turkish machines.
Loans and bridges:
But the economic relationship between the two countries witnessed a qualitative shift after 2002, and Sudan obtained a Turkish loan worth $200 million to implement development projects in the capital, Khartoum, during the era of Governor Abdul Halim Al-Mutafi.
The most prominent projects implemented under that loan are the communications tower, and three bridges on the Nile: Halfaya, Mek Nemr and Tuti.
It was then decided that the Sudanese government would pay $50 million to the Turkish side, to obtain another loan in the amount of $450 million, to build a number of internal roads, bridges, and agricultural projects. But informed sources confirmed to Sudan Events that the Sudanese side did not fulfill the agreed upon amount, which led to Khartoum being deprived of an additional $450 million.
Sudan obtained a third Turkish loan worth $55 million, through an “Omani” company. The loan was allocated for the construction of the “Presidential Villas” complex in Khartoum, the opening of which coincided with the holding of three presidential summits in Khartoum: the “Arab Summit,” “the African Summit,” and the “Caribbean Summit “Pacific”, and at the end of the era of the Al-Bashir regime, the presidential villas were sold to the United States of America.
Support on the Darfur front:
That period also witnessed Turkey’s interest in Sudan during the war in Darfur, with the activity of Turkish charitable associations and institutions, such as the “TIKA” organization, which established the Turkish hospital in the Kalakla area – south of Khartoum – and the Turkish hospital in Nyala, with the latest international standards,
Turkey allocated about 120 million dollars to expand the Suakin port basin on the Red Sea and restore the El-Shenawi Palace and tourist headquarters to be managed for the benefit of the government of Sudan.
Eye on Gezira :
Gezira State in central Sudan has received great Turkish attention, as the “Gezira ” Scheme , the largest global agricultural project that is irrigated smoothly, is located within the state and is located on an area of ​​2.2 million two hundred thousand fedans.
It was agreed between Khartoum and Ankara to cultivate an additional million fedans in the “Matouk” area on Gezira, in partnership, at a financial cost estimated at $12 billion, for cash cultivation of exports and the establishment of slaughterhouses, factories, and animal production and fattening farms. Turkish investors granted an area of ​​75 thousand fedans, to be designated as an experimental farm in the “Matouk” area.”.
According to the agreement, it was decided that a Turkish company would pay 80% of the project’s operating capital and that Sudan would pay 20%.
As a demonstration of good intentions and commitment to implementing the agreement, the Turks revealed the advantage of Sudanese livestock in global markets and the “password” that hinders their marketing abroad, as they established an “artificial insemination center for cows” in the city of Al-Manaqil with more than five million dollars and it was opened.
The center was able to develop the breed of cows and treat 18 defects in Sudanese cattle.
Military relationship secret concerns:
The Sudanese-Turkish partnership in the military field was linked to the personality of the Turkish businessman Oktay, who appeared on the Sudanese scene as an investor in 2005. Sudan witnessed a qualitative shift in the beginning of heavy industries, through companies managed by the defense industries system, which brought industrial equipment through Turkey to establish the iron factory and Giad
factory.
Oktay signed an agreement with the Sudanese army to establish a factory for clothing and military equipment, worth $5 million, with profits to be distributed equally between him and the military institution.
The industries that were later known as “Soor” factories contributed to the consolidation of the clothing and military equipment industry in Sudan for 15 years.
Earlier, Oktay completely ceded the Soor factory to the Sudanese army.
Oktay founded General Electric Company and became an agent for Mutlu batteries in the Sudanese market.
Oktay made a qualitative shift in the shopping process in the capital, Khartoum, and established “Al-Waha Mall, Afraa Mall, and Sanaa Shopping Group.” It was reported that he handed over this business to his son.
He brought in a Turkish company specialized in constructing mosques and founded the “Al-Nour Islamic” complex in the Kafouri area in Khartoum Bahri, modeled after Turkish mosques, at his expense.
He rented the Sanaa Mall attached to the mosque for $10,000 from the Maaraj Organization (dissolved by the transitional government through the Committee for Eradicating Empowerment, Combating Corruption, and Recovering Stolen Money), which was assigned to supervise Al-Nour Complex.
Oktay concluded an agreement with the Government of Sudan to build the “New Khartoum Airport” for about $4 billion, with a bot system for a period of 50 years, provided that he would fully finance it and it was not implemented due to disagreements within the Government of Sudan at the time.
Losing the biggest project:
Turkey, through the companies of the Al-Musiyat Businessmen Group, took another step and decided to invest in the Red Sea State, by submitting an offer to establish a new coastal city 120 kilometers from the city of Port Sudan, at about 4 billion dollars, to establish 3,000 villas, 60,000 vertical residential units, roads, amusement parks, and international hotels. .
Informed sources revealed that the former governor of the state, Ali Ahmed Hamed, strongly opposed the idea of ​​establishing the project and was reluctant to hand over to the Turkish side the space required to implement the project.