Türkiye ready to share its zero-waste experience: First lady

Türkiye is ready to share its experience on the zero-waste initiative that it launched in 2017, first lady Emine Erdoğan said on Friday.

"Türkiye is ready to share its experience with zero waste with any country that wishes, and to put forth whatever it takes to turn zero waste into a global movement," Erdoğan said at the third international zero-waste summit and award ceremony in Istanbul.

The zero-waste project was launched by the first lady with the aim of highlighting the importance of zero waste in fighting the climate crisis.

"The seed we planted with hope in these lands five years ago turned into a big plane tree whose shadow today reaches the farthest countries. This success primarily belongs to our people, who adopted zero waste as a philosophy of life and enrich it with their voluntary contributions," Erdoğan said.

The project has received international praise, with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressing his gratitude to Türkiye's first lady during a conference in New York in September.

Recently, the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on a zero waste initiative presented by Türkiye declaring March 30 International Day of Zero Waste.

"The declaration of good will, with the number of signatories growing every day, was an important step towards institutionalizing the global interest and support for our zero-waste project," said the president's wife.