Germany’s international cooperation with Turkey dates back to the late 1950s and comprises more than 300 projects to date. GIZ has maintained an office in Ankara, the country’s capital, since 1998 and opened a project hub in Gaziantep in 2014.
GIZ is working in Turkey on behalf of the German Government and the European Union (EU). Its priority areas are:
climate change and renewable energies
displacement and migration
its International Services portfolio on EU Pre-Accession Assistance
To promote the expansion of the energy efficiency and renewables sector, GIZ is supporting the Turkish Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation in developing a system for monitoring, reporting on and verifying greenhouse gas emissions and in promoting greater energy efficiency in public buildings.
GIZ is also working with Turkey to address the consequences of the civil war in Syria. It is contributing to efforts to provide training and income opportunities for refugees and members of the host communities. GIZ also supports peacebuilding and intercultural activities with the aim of strengthening social cohesion at local level. This includes building the capacity of authorities, teachers and employees of non-governmental organisations to respond more specifically to people’s needs. Since 2016, GIZ has been coordinating its various projects on displacement and migration in Turkey in a cluster to enable it to consolidate activities and utilise synergies among the projects (Support to Refugees and Host Communities (SRHC) Cluster).
GIZ has been commissioned to carry out these projects by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the EU.