Türkiye boasts of over 200 universities that offer over 45 000 programmes delivered in English, Turkish and other languages.
By Dickson Bandera
Zimbabwe students who wish to study in Turkiye (formerly Turkey) should apply for scholarships when the applications open in January 2024, the Turkiye Ambassador to Zimbabwe Her Excellency Berna Kasnakli Versteden has said.
In an interview, Ambassador Versteden underlined the commitment of the Turkiye government to supporting Zimbabwe education, saying this was due to the excellent relationship between Harare and Instabul, as well as Turkish long-standing inclination to the prosperity of the African continent.
“Zimbabwean students study in universities all over Türkiye thanks to “Türkiye Scholarships”. I would like to announce here that in January 2024 new applications will start. I kindly ask interested students to follow our social media accounts.
“So far, Türkiye has granted over 15.000 scholarships to African students through “Türkiye Scholarships” program. Currently, more than 60 Turkish scholarship beneficiary students from Zimbabwe study in my country,” she said.
Türkiye boasts of over 200 universities that offer over 45 000 programmes delivered in English, Turkish and other languages. There are 10 Turkish universities featured in the QS World University Rankings® 2019, and 45 Turkish universities in the 2019 edition of the QS University Rankings: EECA, a ranking of the leading universities in Emerging Europe and Central Asia.
Both public and private universities in Turkey conform to the Bologna Agreement, which standardizes degree programs across Europe. Hence Ambassador Versteden invited students to consider the country for higher education studies, beside scholarship opportunities.
“Apart from Türkiye Scholarhips, our state and private universities enrol foreign students. Many Zimbabwean students can also take up this opportunity,” she said.
More than 300,000 international students enrolled in Turkish universities in the 2022/23 academic year, reaching a target set by the Turkey Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) in 2022. This number, falling in the same range with other European countries like France and Germany, indicates that Türkiye is one of the most preferred choice for higher education in Europe. Turkish universities are also participants in the Erasmus+ program, which supports international student exchanges.
Another programme that offers training and education opportunities to Zimbabwe is the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA). TIKA, a government department under the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism focusing on development cooperation, works in more than 150 countries. The Agency is responsible for the organization of the bulk of Turkey’s official development assistance to developing countries with a particular focus on Turkic and African countries and communities.
As of January 2022, TİKA has undertaken 30,000 projects worldwide. In Zimbabwe this year, TIKA funded a vocational and technical training project in the agricultural sector in accordance with National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1). TIKA also is supportingvthe establishment of a Microbiology Laboratory at Harare Institute of Technology, which is set for opening early 2024.
Apart from TIKA, Presidency of Religious Affairs and civil society organizations undertake projects like borehole drilling and contributing to food security and assisting people with disability with wheelchairs and other needs.
Turkey is a European country that geographically sits in both Europe and Asia. The country borders with eight countries: Bulgaria, Greece, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Azerbaijan exclave Nakhchivan.
