The Turkish Way of Doing Development Aid?: An Analysis from the Somali Laboratory

Abstract

One of the most novel parts of Turkey’s foreign policy since 2002 is its endeavour to be part of the South–South cooperation and to increase its visibility in development aid projects. Rather than following in the footsteps of countries, such as traditional donors, Ankara has been trying to develop its own understanding and implementation—the Turkish way—based on experiences gained mostly from the Balkans and Central Asian republics. The study in this chapter argues that these dimensions explain Turkey’s development policy at ideational, societal, and institutional levels in Somalia. Religion along with trade is one of the key drivers of this policy at societal and state levels. At the ideational front, there has been a new geographical imagination in Turkey that sees Africa from a totally different perspective, comparing it to a decade ago. All these levels can be observed in Turkey’s policy towards Somalia.