The World Bank on Thursday announced that its board had approved $600 million (TL 19.8 billion) in funding to support Türkiye in its mission to safeguard its citizens and enhance resilience against increasingly frequent and severe floods and droughts, exacerbated by climate change.
The funding will fuel the Türkiye Flood and Drought Management Project, designed to enhance flood protection for those in flood-vulnerable zones, improve drought monitoring for farmers and strengthen the nation's overall capacity to manage flood and drought risks effectively.
The flood management component aims to directly benefit over 150,000 people across seven river basins highly susceptible to flooding, the World Bank said in a statement. Simultaneously, approximately 10,000 farmers will gain access to crucial drought monitoring tools, including real-time data, to aid in managing water scarcity.
Floods currently represent nearly 30% of Türkiye's natural disasters, causing significant economic harm and increasing fatalities. Drought poses another significant challenge, especially for Türkiye, which ranks as the world’s ninth largest agricultural producer.
"Türkiye is increasingly recognizing the importance of taking action on climate change," said Humberto Lopez, the World Bank Country director for Türkiye.
"The World Bank is delighted to support Türkiye in its wide-ranging efforts to build resilience against climate-related risks to protect people and the economy as well as achieve the country’s target of becoming carbon neutral by 2053," Lopez noted.
The Türkiye Flood and Drought Management Project will tackle climate-related challenges through initiatives such as:
"Flood and drought management is a priority area for Türkiye and this project focuses on outcomes that will increase climate resilience to these natural disasters, which are occurring with increasing frequency and intensity," said Canan Yıldız Uz, one of the World Bank project team leaders.
The World Bank said it is an important and reliable partner for Türkiye in areas such as disaster risk management, municipal infrastructure, water resources, housing and health.
Other World Bank-supported projects include the Türkiye Earthquake, Floods and Wildfires Emergency Reconstruction Project, the Climate and Disaster Resilient Cities Project, the Disaster Risk Management in Schools Project, the Seismic Resilience and Energy Efficiency Project, and the Health Systems Strengthening and Support Project. Furthermore, projects like the Irrigation Modernization Project and the Water Circularity and Efficiency Improvement Project aim to improve irrigation efficiency and pilot the reuse of treated wastewater for irrigation.
