Ankara, T¨¹rkiye, 9¨C10 September 2026 ¡ª Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Technology Bank for Least Developed Countries (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵTB) Managing Director, Mr Roland Mollerus, visited Ankara for high-level meetings with government officials, United Nations representatives and development partners.
Accompanied by Ms Federica Irene Falomi, Economic Affairs Officer, Mr Mollerus met with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Technology, Presidency of Strategy and Budget, COP31 Presidency Office and the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Resident Coordinator¡¯s Office, as well as representatives of the Norwegian and Dutch embassies.
Strengthening cooperation with the Turkish Government
T¨¹rkiye, as the Technology Bank¡¯s host country and principal donor, was at the centre of the visit. Discussions with government counterparts focused on preparations for the 2027¨C2031 partnership and financing framework, including future areas of cooperation and the next financial agreement.
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Ambassador Aylin Sekizk?k, Director General for International Economic Affairs, reaffirmed T¨¹rkiye¡¯s commitment to supporting the Technology Bank and the importance of LDCs in T¨¹rkiye¡¯s foreign policy.
The delegation also met Deputy Minister Mr Muhammet Kas?m G?n¨¹ll¨¹ at the Ministry of Industry and Technology to explore areas for future collaboration, including the LDC-GIF mechanism, Technology Makers Lab and TechBridge, which supports SMEs in LDCs to make effective use of digital technologies.
Preparing for COP31 and strengthening Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ coordination
The visit also provided an opportunity to strengthen coordination ahead of COP31. In discussions with Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Resident Coordinator in T¨¹rkiye Mr Babatunde Ahonsi, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵTB shared plans for its engagement at COP31, including a co-hosted event with the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵOSSC), as well as the planned launch of the LDC-GIF initiative.
The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ meetings also covered arrangements for Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵTB¡¯s future presence in T¨¹rkiye. The Istanbul Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Common Premises is expected to become operational by mid-2027, while options for Ankara include space within the RCO premises and a potential location at METU Technopark.
Engaging development partners
As part of efforts to strengthen engagement with development partners, Mr Mollerus also met H.E. Mr Andreas Gaarder, Ambassador of Norway, and Mr Hanno W¨¹rzner, Charg¨¦ d¡¯Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the Netherlands. Discussions covered evolving development cooperation priorities and opportunities for continued engagement and resource mobilization.
The visit strengthened Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵTB¡¯s engagement with key partners in T¨¹rkiye and provided further momentum for discussions on the Technology Bank¡¯s next partnership and financing framework.
