The leadership of a leading chamber representing German businesses Thursday called for permanent support and long-term investment for Türkiye as it rebuilds regions devastated by earthquakes in early February.
The quakes claimed over 50,000 lives, toppled hundreds of thousands of buildings, left millions homeless and severely damaged the southeastern region's infrastructure. Business groups, economists and the government have said rebuilding could cost more than $100 billion.
Aid for Türkiye should be as broad as possible, said Peter Adrian, president of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry at a German-Turkish reconstruction conference in Berlin.
The event was organized by the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) and Turkish partner organizations.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told the conference in a video message that the damage was estimated at over $100 billion.
Rebuilding, Scholz said, will be a "Herculean task" that cannot be accomplished with public funds alone but requires companies to invest in the region's future as well.
Germany and Türkiye have close business and personal relations. Türkiye is an important market for German firms and several million Turkish immigrants have settled in Germany since the 1950s.
Scholz noted that over 7,000 German companies are active in Türkiye and that thousands of companies from elsewhere in Europe are joining German firms in investing in the disaster-struck region.
"Together with the local economy, this is a strong foundation for the reconstruction of the affected regions," Scholz said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in a video message that they removed all the debris and started reconstruction work in the disaster zone. He said Türkiye hopes to shoulder “the heavy burden with the support of friends like you.”
Erdoğan emphasized efforts to bring life in the region back to normal and stressed cities in the earthquake regions must be made safer.
"We have swiftly started the construction of permanent housing in areas without earthquake risk," said the president. Some 650,000 new homes will be built in the disaster-hit provinces, he added.
Erdoğan stressed that Türkiye will gradually deliver the houses starting this fall and complete the construction of 319,000 houses within the first year after the earthquakes. The president thanked the countries that showed solidarity with Türkiye after the earthquakes.
"The cost of the earthquake to our economy is estimated to be a total of $104 billion. With the support of our dear friends we will overcome this heavy burden together," Erdoğan noted. Besides houses, thousands of schools and hospitals must now also be rebuilt.
Further reconstruction conferences are planned in Türkiye next year and in Brussels in 2025.
