FOREWORDS
South-South cooperation presents a dynamic and innovative toolbox to surmount today’s challenges in the development ecosystem and to serve as an important toolbox to address the needs of people. This toolbox that values partnership among equals based on the principles of solidarity and ownership constitutes a key instrument towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
As a regional inter-governmental organization and a responsible international actor with inclusive and comprehensive approach, the Turkic Council attributes utmost importance to South-South cooperation in its endeavors to foster collaboration among its member States and across the region. Thus, our member States – Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey – boldly uses the South-South spirit in their individual efforts in development cooperation.
The Turkic Council accumulates its efforts through the realization of result-oriented projects in different sectors to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with the idea of leaving no one behind. While doing so, we locate human and institutional capacity-building, experience-sharing and exchange of good practices in a wide range of areas that we operate at the core of our working mechanism.
Firmly believing in the strength of South-South cooperation for our region, we are honoured to take part in this new series of UNOSSC publications, as the first regional organization. Hence, we recognize that these series of publications present a remarkable initiative providing necessary ground to exchange home–grown solution models which contribute to ensure sustainable development worldwide.
In this publication, we will share with you the ways and means regarding how the Turkic Council implements the South-South cooperation in promoting sustainable development at regional and global levels while we will focus on certain specific case studies in the cooperation areas such as tourism, customs and diplomacy. We will also concentrate on the close linkage of our activities in different cooperation fields with the SDGs.
As the Turkic Council, we are committed to carrying on our fruitful collaboration with the UNOSSC and our partners to expand South-South cooperation in our region taking into account the fact that we need to join our hands to leave a better world for our next generation.
Ambassador Ramil Hasanov
Secretary General of the Turkic Council
Initiated in 2016, South-South in Action (SSiA) is UNOSSC\’s flagship publication series. It is designed to create a space for United Nations Member States, intergovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders to share the foundations of their successful South-South and triangular development activities, so that others can replicate these experiences.
Our Office is proud to present this publication together with the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, also known as the Turkic Council. Comprised of countries of the South, linked through a shared history, culture, and language, the Turkic Council builds on a set of values and political commitments that have established a solid institutional basis for a systematic approach to mutually beneficial cooperation.
Regional organizations such as the Turkic Council see South-South and triangular cooperation as instrumental in promoting collaboration among their member States in order to solve common problems and attain common aspirations. This publication demonstrates how the Turkic Council has built a platform for South-South cooperation that facilitates fostering knowledge and exchanging experience among its members.
With a strong focus on knowledge-sharing and capacity development, the Turkic Council is taking an active role in raising awareness on South-South and triangular cooperation, but in the region as well as globally.
This publication demonstrates that South-South cooperation can be used in different formats and various sectoral areas. The Turkic Council serves as a match-maker and supporter in the development of its member States. It also works to consolidate partnerships with international organizations, academia, and the private sector incorporating the sustainable development priorities defined in the national agendas of its member States.
The experiences presented in this publication represent good samples of South-South cooperation among countries with a shared cultural and linguistic heritage. Moving forward, these experiences will serve to facilitate a smooth and low-cost exchange of expertise and knowledge. It is my hope that this publication will encourage other countries and regional organizations to effectively utilize South-South and triangular cooperation, as a complement to North-South cooperation, toward the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Jorge Chediek
Envoy of the Secretary-General on South-South Cooperation and Director of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation
