BURSA, Turkey

Turkey will donate 20,000 face masks to Zambia to help the southern-central African country fight the novel coronavirus. 

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Atilla Odunc, a ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party Bursa deputy and head of the Turkey-Zambia Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group, said the COVID-19 outbreak has affected the whole world, not only Turkey.

Saying the mask project is being carried out with the support of Turkey’s Inegol Municipality and the Rumelia Balkan Industrialists and Businessmen Association, Odunc said: "I hope we will present these masks to Zambia's ambassador to Ankara in the coming days. At the same time, businesspeople will meet for dinner.

“The important thing is creating a trade bridge among the Balkans, Turkey and Africa. I hope this visit will lead to positive results. We will give them nearly 20,000 masks.”

Turkey has sent medical aid to over 150 countries and six international organizations to help them combat the coronavirus pandemic, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last month.

The landlocked country of Zambia has so far reported 13,214 coronavirus cases, 11,899 recoveries and 300 fatalities, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.

The global pandemic has claimed over 909,670 lives in 188 countries and regions since it originated in Wuhan, China last December.

The US, India, Brazil, Russia, and Peru are currently the worst-hit countries.

More than 28 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 18.9 million, the Johns Hopkins data says.

*Writing by Seda Sevencan