Our Directorate organised a tour for 34 international press members in Malatya, which was affected by the February 6 earthquakes.
Malatya Governor Ersin Yazıcı briefed press members from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus at the Public Library on the activities carried out in the city following the earthquake.
Sharing the numbers of buildings that were collapsed, heavily damaged, and demolished in the city, Yazıcı said that the construction of permanent houses is ongoing.
Stating that the metropolitan districts Yeşilyurt and Battalgazi, as well as Doğanşehir and Akçadağ, which make up the city centre, were also affected by the earthquake, Yazıcı said that in order to get commercial activities back on their feet as soon as possible, the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change will start the construction of 23 thousand houses and 11 thousand establishments on 313 hectares, some of which started in the city centre as of September.
Yazıcı underscored that the great Turkish state did not abandon its citizens in the wake of such a disaster; rather, it provided extensive financial assistance to those affected in the immediate aftermath of the quake. More precisely, he indicated that an additional five thousand Turkish liras have been contributed for rental support, in addition to the 6.1 billion Turkish liras that have been designated for relocation and rent assistance. Furthermore, the costs of living for residents of container cities are covered by the state.
Informing that 66 out of the 100 mosques that were devastated in the earthquake have undergone restoration efforts, whereas two of the school buildings were completely destroyed and 46 others were severely damaged, Governer Yazı said:
"A total of 855 classrooms were rendered unfit for use as learning facilities, destroyed, or heavily damaged. Construction work is underway for a total of 1,600 classrooms. Around 500 of these have been completed to this point. Some of these school buildings have been funded by benefactors. We extended 695 million Turkish liras in assistance to our quake-hit producers in our capacity as the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Development Organisation (KOSGEB) offered 5,023 of our quake-hit shopkeepers two billion Turkish liras in assistance. No major hospitals experienced a cessation of health services due to the absence of major damage and interruptions to our health infrastructure. The population of Malatya, which had previously stood at 812 thousand, dropped to 742 thousand by last week. Approximately 70 thousand people appear to have left Malatya. We believe that once Malatya recovers, particularly in the city centre, the part of the city known as the bazaar will likely follow suit in one and a half to two years. We sincerely wish for the return of the majority of our fellow Malatya citizens who have left."
The authorities provided members of the press with information as they toured the post-earthquake TOKİ residences and the show flat in the Gelinciktepe region of the central Battalgazi district.
