Turkey donates sea ambulance for Rohingyas in Bhasanchar

NEWS DESK

The Turkish government has donated a sea ambulance to help the Bangladesh government in ensuring emergency health services for the forcibly displaced Rohingyas who have been residing at the camps in the Bay of Bengal; island Bhashanchar.

The sea ambulance with the carrying capacity of two patients and 15 passengers was handed over to Bangladesh authority by the Turkish overseas cooperation body named Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) recently, a TIKA press release said in Dhaka.

Turkish Ambassador to Bangladesh Ramis Sen, Bangladesh Disaster Management and Relief Ministry Secretary Kamrul Hasan, TIKA Vice President Dr Umit Naci Yorulmaz and Office of the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mizanur Rahman were present during the handing over ceremony.

The ambulance will be deployed to transport patients requiring emergency medical services to either Noakhali or Chittagong from Bashanchar, the 17 square kilometers island that is 60 kilometers away from the mainland.

TIKA works under the Culture and Tourism Ministry of Turkey focusing on coordinating Turkey’s official development assistance, humanitarian aid, and cooperation programs in 150 countries around the world.

TIKA started its official journey in Bangladesh in 2014, aiming to strengthen bilateral ties and cooperation.