27 February 2017•Update: 27 February 2017
BARCELONA, Spain
Turkey's dominant cellphone operator, Turkcell, won an international award for its “important contribution” to the communications sector, the company said on Monday.
The award came at the GSM Association (GSMA)’s Mobile World Congress which began in the Spanish city of Barcelona.
Turkcell picked up the "Important Contribution to Mobile Communication Sector" accolade.
In addition to Turkcell, several other telecommunication firms -- including the Vodafone Foundation, Asiacell, Zain and Deutsche Telecom -- were awarded for their efforts to help Syrian refugees.
Turkcell is one of the signatories of the GSMA’s Humanitarian Connectivity Charter.
Receiving the award in the name of the five operators from GSMA Chairman Sunil Mittal, Turkcell CEO Kaan Terzioglu said:
"For me, it is a big honor to be here in the name of the five companies who work to make the world a better place. We should know that we are in a sector … which can make a difference in the world's biggest tragedy. This humanitarian crisis is a very a big test for all of us."
"We have seen again that communication has a lifesaving role in crisis terms over the previous six years," he added.
The head of Turkcell stated they established services so that people affected by the crisis could receive vital information and use communications in refugee camps.
"We formed emergency services and helplines for Syrians," Terzioglu said, adding they provided refugees with access to information and services with mobile applications such as Merhaba Umut (Hello Hope).
Terzioglu also praised the other four firms sharing the award.
Turkish firms attend world congress
The Mobile World Congress (MWC17), a major technology-sector event, is being attended by 2,200 technology firms -- including 11 Turkish ones.
Spain’s monarch, King Felipe VI officially launched the event.
New products from Huawei, LG, Samsung, Nokia, Sony, ZTE, and Lenovo-Motorola were on display.
Huawei introduced its new P10 and P10 Plus smartphones, due to go on sale in late March. LG unveiled its G6 smartphone, which has double cameras while Sony displayed its Xperia XZ Premium.
A cult cell phone model -- Nokia’s 3310 -- has been re-released as a modernized version.
At least 100,000 industry professionals are expected to visit the congress, which will end on Thursday. The financial contribution of the event for the city of Barcelona is expected to be around €460 million ($486.8 million).
Turkcell offered a presentation about its latest 4.5G technology -- also known as LTE infrastructure -- in Turkey.
Another Turkish company, Aselsan, which produces military radios and defense electronic systems for the Turkish Armed Forces, is also participating at the Barcelona event.
*Reporting by Senhan Bolelli; Writing by Can Erozden
