Speak a new language so that the world will be a new world.âRumi
In his famous book The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Adam Smith (1759) creates a discussion on a fictitious natural catastrophe that suddenly destroys a huge population in Asia. He then considers a âman of humanityâ in Europe and imagines his reaction upon receiving news of that dreadful calamity. The reaction, Smith argues, would not go beyond a typical surprise, accompanied by an expression of humane sentiments. The European man, who has no sort of connection with that part of the world, would later pursue his business or his pleasure with the same ease and tranquility as if no such accident had happened. However, if the same man was to lose his little finger the next day, he would not be able to sleep that night. Smith then concludes that the destruction of an immense multitude plainly seems an object less interesting to the man than a paltry misfortune of his own.
Humankind is often willing to trade the world to protect itself from even the slightest possible harm. Then why are human beings able to show indifference to the pain of others? The ideas of altruism, conscience, and humanity that Adam Smith examined based on a fabricated story continue to be questioned today, centuries later. Are the reactions toward the present-day sorrows of troubled lands any different from the âinstantaneous astonishments and condolencesâ expressed by the character in the picture Smith painted in the eighteenth century? Does this situation stem from the anonymity and lack of visibility of those suffering afar?
It is of course beyond the limits of this book to find the answers to this age-old question. However, this book proceeds with the fact that human beings are indeed able to show the altruism inherent in their nature, when necessary. A major part of this issue undoubtedly relates to the long-standing international aid transfers flowing into countries struggling with fragility or in need of development assistance. On the other hand, the purpose for which foreign aid is given and the degree of its effectiveness are fervently debated in the discourse of the social sciences, including development economics, political science, sociology, and international relations. While the international community has carried out aid activities for decades with some ever-changing dynamics, the fact that humanitarian problems in certain regions have grown increasingly permanent and vicious warrants a serious re-examination.
In this context, the failure to achieve the cooperation objectives set by global agreements reveals an irresponsibility regarding âinputsâ apart from the obvious weakness of âoutputs.â This picture, which points to huge gaps in both liabilities and practices surrounding foreign assistance, necessitates the cultivation of a fresh perspective. For this purpose, the growing role of âemerging economiesâ in humanitarian and development assistance deserves a closer look to discover the dynamism they have contributed to the international cooperation agenda, which has long been under the hegemony of developed countries.
In a setting that requires a breath of fresh air for the global cooperation system, Turkey has made a staggering difference in recent years. Turkey, garnering much interest together with its designation in 2009 as an emerging donor by the United Nations, has seen an extraordinary success in 2018 by becoming the leading country in official development assistance (ODA) as a percentage of gross national income (GNI). Moreover, it has been announced that Turkey leads the world as the country devoting the most to humanitarian assistance. These world records clearly indicate that Turkey has surpassed the performance of the members of the OECD-DAC, which it has joined as an observer, as well as all the developed economies.
Turkeyâs humanitarian achievement, in an era where its economy rose rapidly from the low-middle income level in the early 2000s to upper-middle income, to becoming a world leader in international cooperation, merits recognition in the current setting, which desperately calls for a new formula for the sake of humanity. As the literature on this issue amply demonstrates, the international community pays less attention to Turkeyâs record-breaking activities than to those of other assistance providers. Yet, understanding the ingredients of such a performance would make a significant value-added contribution to the international aid architecture that has been evolving, with numerous ups and downs, since the mid-twentieth century. After all, it is clear that Turkey attaches importance to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, and thus genuinely cares for the success of the global cooperation system.
It is important to emphasize that, while Turkey had reserved a place for foreign assistance in its agenda before the 2000s, its efforts as a humanitarian state have evolved into todayâs inspiring story along with the accession of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) governments. Under the leadership of Recep Tayyip ErdoÄan as the President and former Prime Minister, Turkey has become a major provider of humanitarian and development cooperation during this period, with the support of its improved economic level. This period also marks the expansion of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TÄ°KA) and its worldwide activities. TÄ°KA offices have spread over the world from South Asia to Latin America, thereby proving an important tool in Turkeyâs development cooperation story. The agency has completed approximately 30,000 projects in 170 countries, in 60 of which it has program coordination offices.
In fact, the country has done more than its share in terms of global aid commitments based on the principles of humanitarian imperative and impartiality. Taking on this difficult task was made possible by integrating the collective consciousness that is deeply rooted in Turkish society with a decisive leadership at the top.
Considering the past failures, it is urgent for the world today to gain a new understanding of humanitarianism and development cooperation. This book provides a selection from the innumerable projects of cooperation Turkey has realized across the world in the new millennium, bringing them to the attention of international public opinion and touching upon their underlying dynamics. The goal here is to present the extraordinary initiative taken by the country as a source of inspiration for international cooperation and on behalf of humanity. The book also explains and defines Turkeyâs approach to international development cooperation.
Part I: Development, Aid, and Problems
The book starts with an overview of the ongoing poverty in the world, questioning the ineffectiveness of international cooperation in recent history. Within this framework, a brief analysis of Sub-Saharan Africa is provided first, since it is the region that shows the biggest gap between the worldâs development targets and indicators. Whereas the populations living in poverty have declined globally for the past few decades, Sub-Saharan Africa has been an exception. The region, which has received the largest share of foreign assistance for decades, still struggles with unacceptable humanitarian conditions. As for the future, worldwide poverty will continue to be partly eradicated, but Africa is expected to occupy a bigger share of the global poverty pie. Apart from the impact of the colonial legacy on Africaâs development, the unsatisfactory effects of Western aid to the continent have been a common matter of debate in the literature. Arguing that reaching a sustainable solution depends on understanding the roots of the problem, Chapter 2 attempts to summarize the factors that lie behind the underdevelopment of Sub-Saharan Africa. It suggests that international aid is useful only on the condition that African countries and their partners work to create the most effective and needed assistance along with an environment where development can take root.
Chapter 3 discusses the potential success factors for international cooperation and suggests a framework. International aid cooperation, which started in the 1940s with the purpose of tackling the ruins of the old world order, has changed its perspective in many ways over the course of time. Yet the disappointing outcomes of the decades-long system, which has continued primarily under the hegemony of developed economies, have been increasingly called into question. In the prevailing setting, the world stands at a critical juncture to reach the 2030 goals, and international development cooperation cannot be sidelined. Data on poverty and underdevelopment combined with global commitments heighten the humanitarian responsibility of cooperation partners to collaborate further, and in an effective way. The key issue here is learning lessons from both failed cases and inspiring practices, with the purpose of re-shaping the development assistance architecture. In this regard, a better understanding of the factors behind success and failure is of paramount importance.
In a setting where the efforts of many countries fall behind their commitments, Turkey appears as an inspiring example because of its promising ODA figures. Along with its notable economic growth and extended foreign policy in the 2000s during AK Party governments, Turkey expanded the scope of its international cooperation and reached out to a number of countries. The triangle of TÄ°KA-AFAD-Kızılay, which has also been backed by NGOs, has enabled Turkey to reach out to people in hardship from the Philippines to Pakistan and from Palestine to Arakan. The generosity of the country toward the Syrian people serves as the most striking example in that regard, highlighting Turkeyâs adoption of the humanitarian imperative. Within this period, Turkey also significantly increased its contributions to the development stories of many partner countries. As a result of these efforts, Turkeyâs position as a leading actor in development cooperation markedly increased within the international community. In light of these salient facts, the principles of the Turkish model of cooperation are discussed in Chapter 4 in comprehensive detail. The following sections concentrate on different aspects of Turkeyâs cooperation perspective, demonstrating how they are interrelated at the core.
Part II: Turkeyâs Diplomatic and Humanitarian Actions
This section of the volume presents four leading case studies that explain the countryâs strong diplomatic stance for the huma...