JOHANNESBURG
Turkey repatriated 84 nationals Tuesday who were stranded in Mozambique for months after air traffic was halted to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
“This flight was made possible through co-ordination between the Turkish embassy, Mozambican authorities and Turkish Airlines,” Turkish Ambassador to Mozambique Zeynep Kiziltan told Anadolu Agency.
She said most of the stranded Turks were employees of Turkish companies based in Mozambique.
Kiziltan said it was the first Turkish Airlines repatriation flight from Mozambique since the beginning of the lockdown.
Mozambique has 1,701 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 11 deaths with 596 recoveries. Economic and commercial relations between Turkey and Mozambique are rapidly developing with bilateral trade in 2019 reaching $160 million.
Turkish companies are active in Mozambique energy, cement, and construction sectors. Prominent Turkish companies are also opting to take part in infrastructure works related to the LNG projects in the north operated by international consortia.
