The governments of South Sudan and Turkey have reached an agreement, paving the way for Turkish Airlines to roll out a plan to start operating in Juba.
This was revealed after a Turkish delegation met the Vice President for Economic Cluster, Dr James Wani Igga, yesterday in Juba.
In a statement from the office of Dr Igga, the Acting Ambassador of Turkey to South Sudan, Reces Ostop, said the meeting was centred on the relationship between the two countries and how Turkey can invest more in South Sudan.
He said there are many development projects that Turkey wants to bring to South Sudan to give more strength to trade ties between the two countries.
The deputy manager of Turkish Airlines in Juba, Enes Saim, confirmed that the technical group of the airline had finished their assessment at Juba International Airport.
“The technical body of the airline has completed an assessment at Juba International Airport for Turkish Airlines to start operating in the country from Istanbul to Juba and vice versa,” Saim said.
However, it is not clear when the airlines will start operating in Juba.
Dr Igga said the Turkish government and the business community have shown an interest in investing in the country, particularly in airlines and other areas.
The VP said South Sudan cannot continue depending on the oil, and in this case, the government is working day and night to seek international investors who are willing to come and invest in the country to create jobs for the youth.
“The government will continue partnering with Turkish Airlines in South Sudan to achieve development goals, and such projects would boost the economies of the two countries in the field of airlines,” he said.
Currently, Turkish Airlines operates in 122 countries and 304 destinations all over the world. There are 114 destinations in Europe, 17 destinations in America, and 37 destinations in the far East and Asia.
Since the return of peace in 2018, South Sudan has been slowly gaining back to business by luring investors to jumpstart the economy.
In August last year, the Ugandan First Airbus A330neo, a similar airline, landed at Juba International Airport for the first time from Entebbe.
The airline that has full comfort with 20 full–flat, business–class, and 28 premium-economy seats, as well as 210 economy class seats, totalling 258 seats, landed several times in Juba.