ISTANBUL
The prime minister of Chad has called on Turkish firms to invest in the African nation, describing the country as a “virgin nation.”
Kalzeubet Pahimi Deubet was speaking in Istanbul on Thursday as Turkey and Chad move to establish an economic council to advise on investing in the central African country.
"Chad is still a virgin country with many resources and opportunities," said Deubet in his speech at a Chad-Turkey business forum, pointing to food, mining, oil, transportation and renewables as sectors for investment.
The Chadian premier is on a three-day visit to Turkey, having already met Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
The head of Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board, Omer Cihad Vardan, said there were significant agricultural opportunities in the 1.2 million square kilometer country, where two-thirds of the national territory can be used as farm land.
Turkey seeks to increase business ties and its exports by improving political relations with African nations; trade volume has surged from $4 billion to $20 billion since 2000 according to Turkey-Africa business coordinator, Tamer Taskin.
Turkey's deputy economy minister, Adnan Yildirim, said the two countries have a goal of increasing trade volume to $100 million; this would mean more than quadrupling the current amount of $24 million in 2013.
Yildirim said the current volume passed more than $31 million in the first 10 months of 2014; Chad has a GDP of $13.5 billion in 2013, according to World Bank data.
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