By Nilay Kar Onum
ISTANBUL
African and Turkish academics explored ways to further improve ties during an international symposium held in Istanbul on Thursday amid transformations in the region.
Academics, scholars, think thank representatives and intellectuals from 15 countries took part in the two-day symposium, titled Society and Politics in North Africa: Transformations and Challenges, held at Istanbul University.
The event was organized by Ankara-based Center for Middle Eastern Studies (ORSAM) with the sponsorship of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), Presidency For Turks Aboard And Related Communities (YTB) and Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
Ahmet Uysal, director of ORSAM, praised the deep-rooted ties between Turkey and African nations, saying, “We need to rediscover these ties and raise them again."
Speaking on the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, Uysal said it was "a search for a future", but that "unfortunately", some countries either from the East or the West did not want stability in the region.
Tunisia was the birthplace of the uprisings that swept several Arab countries such as Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain in 2011.
Uysal said, “We need to strengthen the society internally so that we can prevent the external interferences.”
During his speech, he also called for setting up a joint council on social science in order to increase the communication and cooperation with African nations.
“If we can activate this project, we can create a network, so that us academics can overcome at least some of the problems and create an environment where the next generation will better understand each other.”
-Reviving deep-rooted ties
Seif El-Islam Chouia, a sociology professor at the Badji Mokhtar University in Annaba, on the northeastern coast of Algeria, also hailed the deeply rooted ties between North Africa and Turkey, saying, “We have historic roots and we need to further strengthen this.”
Chouia thanked Turkish academics and students for contributing in boosting ties with North Africa through researches about the region. “This means updating and reviving historic ties," he said.
Underlining the importance of reviewing the recent developments in the region multi-dimensionally, Chouia said: “I hope this symposium will be a beginning and it will be held annually from now on.”
According to think tank ORSAM, “For nearly two decades, North African societies have undergone significant and fundamental transformations in their social, cultural and religious patterns that have created problems and dangers for their societies.”
For his part, Yusuf Tekin, a professor of social sciences at Ankara Haci Bayram Veli University, said the African continent would be at the center of discussions of the new world order due to its young population, economic resources, and high fertility rate.
Demographic predictions show that one in five of the world population will be African by 2030, Tekin said.
He stressed the importance of education, saying it is the “most important tool” to be able to have a voice in the new world order.
“In order to realize this, we need to start working by educating our youths and our children,” Tekin said.
Talking about Turkey’s interest in Africa during the Justice and Development (AK) Party's ruling, he said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan paid visits to 28 African countries during his prime ministry and presidency terms.
Turkey’s National Education Ministry, along with the TIKA and Council of Higher Education (YOK), has played an active role in the region, the professor added.
“We, as the Republic of Turkey, can have further cooperation with these [North African] countries, particularly in the field of education," he added.
Turkey declared 2005 as the "Year of Africa" and Turkey was accorded observer status by the African Union during the same year.
On Friday's sessions, academics will discuss the energy and geopolitics of North Africa, foreign policy in North Africa and immigration in North African countries.
