Khartoum’s Little Turkey
Khartoum is 200 years old city with a diverse multicultural city with many ethnicities, religions, cultures, tribes, and foreign communities. Starting from today, I will introduce you to many of the foreign communities from different nations and countries that contribute to the very essence of culture and life in Khartoum through a series of articles called “Khartoum Little Nations". I will go through all communities from vital regions and nations that are residing in Khartoum in order to affirm and promote the significance of cultural exchange and communication between Sudan and the rest of the world, promote for tourism and
business and tourism in Sudan, and last but not least to facilitate and strengthen the exchange of all that’s good between Sudan and the rest of the world.
In this series of articles, I will start with Turkey 🇹🇷
It’s well known that the first encounter between the Turks and Sudanese people was truly unfortunate in the past during the era of Mohammed Ali Pasha, who invaded Sudan with his army, killed the Sudanese people, robbed them of their gold, and enslaved many of the Sudanese people and ironically it was the dynasty of Mohammed Ali Pasha who founded modern day Khartoum 200 years ago.
But many things had changed ever since Sudan gained its independence from the British Empire and ever since the deposition of the dynasty of Mohammed Ali Pasha and the creation of the modern Turkish Republic.
The Turkish presence in Khartoum can be noticed mainly in food, culture, banking, and humanitarian work.
Culture & Education
Yunus Emre Cultural Institute is the main cultural entity through which Turkey exchange its culture with Khartoum and teaches the Turkish language. The institute mainly focus on teaching the Turkish language, issue Turkish language certifications upon success in Turkish linguistic exams, host cultural events, and much much more.
As for schools, Maarif School a Turkish elementary school that provides good education with many facilities that empower the children.
Restaurants
These are a number of restaurants that are specialized in offering the Turkish cuisine foods and drinks.
2. Bosporus Restaurant and Cafe
3. Imtiyaz Restaurant and Cafe
Airlines
Turkish Airlines has only one office in Khartoum near to Al-Salam Hotel.
Banking
The first and only Turkish bank to operate inside Sudan is Ziraat Katilim Bank, which is specialized in investing in agricultural projects around Sudan. The bank offers a number of services for individuals which include: SWIFT money transfers, opening of current accounts in only three main currencies which are: Sudanese pounds, Euros, and Emirati Dirhams. Also, it has the service of foreign currencies exchange.
Humanitarian work
Turkish Red Crescent or TIKA , is an agency that is specialized in humanitarian work, and running development and infrastructure projects in Sudan and around the globe.
Conclusion
To conclude, the Turks contributed to Khartoum’s fabric by culture, education, humanitarian work, investment, and banking services through NGOs, Ziraat Bank, and also the privately owned Turkish restaurants.
