Assisting More Than 700,000 Afghan People Through Turkey's 'Kindness Trains' Loaded with Aid

The sixth “Kindness Train” departs from Ankara, Türkiye, on Aug. 24, 2022. (AA Photo)

The Kindness Trains carry both necessity items and a glimmer of hope

Turkey’s Kindness Trains

6th “Kindness Trains” loaded with about 7,000 tons of humanitarian aid sent by Turkey provided a lifeline for Afghanistan, which has long faced a humanitarian crisis. More than 700,000 people (about half the population of Hawaii) in the Asian country, from the impoverished to disaster victims, orphans, widows, and people with disabilities, benefited from Turkish aid so far.

Afghanistan found itself deprived of international humanitarian assistance when U.S.-led NATO forces withdrew in August 2021 and the Taliban took control of the country. For years the lack of assistance needed to ensure the welfare of the population in war-torn Afghanistan was economically devastating for the country.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has assigned the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) to coordinate the work to respond to the deepening humanitarian crisis. AFAD spearheaded the aid campaigns carried out by Turkish charities from across the country. In a short time, trains were brimming with humanitarian aid, from food to hygiene kits.

Hamza Tasdelen, Vice President of AFAD, said “Physical distance is an illusion in this temporary world. Distances between hearts are not measurable units. Afghanistan, for which we meet today, is at a distance of heart for us. The common culture of Turkey and Afghanistan is not limited to Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi, who was born in Afghanistan. There are many poets among our common values.”

Tasdelen also underlined the vital importance of these aids, emphasizing that “27 million people in Afghanistan need support to live. About 19 million people are in urgent need of food. With the “Goodness Train Project” that we started in 2021 with the cooperation of TCDD General Directorate of Transportation and non-governmental organizations, a total of 14 trains have reached Afghanistan so far,” he said.

Trains delivered aid to the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, with four separate mass deliveries in each province. The aid helps tens of thousands of families get through the harsh winter and includes blankets, winter clothes, flour, sugar, cooking oil, and basic foodstuffs. The trains also carried aid for orphanages, schools, hospitals, centers for disadvantaged people, and places of worship, from stationery to carpets and wheelchairs, from medicine to medical equipment.

Along with the economic crisis, Afghanistan was hit by earthquakes and floods, and “Kindness Trains” also reached the victims of those disasters.

AFAD, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), Turkiye’s Maarif Foundation, and the Turkish Red Crescent undertook the delivery of the aid to families.

“The international community exerts intense efforts to address the needs of people in the face of a great humanitarian crisis. Countries separately carry out aid campaigns and Turkiye leads in these individual efforts. Turkiye is the leading country providing aid to Afghanistan,” Cihad Erginay, Turkiye’s ambassador in Kabul said.

Erginay also mentioned that this winter is expected to be colder, and it is important to provide necessary aid for the people of Afghanistan, which needs aid “in every field you can imagine.”

Türkiye’s second ‘goodness train’ departs for Afghanistan

People are grateful to donor countries, especially Turkiye. “They view how sincere Turkiye is in its assistance. We need to sustain this aid because statistics show a majority of the Afghan public face acute hunger and malnutrition is a serious issue, especially among mothers and children. This, in turn, paves the way for an unhealthy future generation and growing health problems, as well as the workload for hospitals and the overall healthcare system. We are trying to focus our aid efforts in this area,” Erginay said.

Turkiye recently provided aid to a children’s hospital in Kabul, which bears the name of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Republic of Turkiye. The second largest children’s hospital in Afghanistan, the venue admits sick children from all around the country. Turkiye recently covered most operating costs of the hospital.

“But in the end, humanitarian assistance is not sustainable. The international community should help the people of Afghanistan to stand on their own feet. So, we believe it is better now to concentrate on projects that will create jobs,” Erginay also mentioned.

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