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Türkiye marked a significant milestone during the seventh annual National Forestation Day on Nov. 11, with over 1.28 million citizens participating in tree-planting activities across 1,391 locations nationwide.
Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumaklı announced on Sunday via social media that nearly 15 million saplings were planted, breaking records for both participant turnout and the total number of trees planted.
This event, first initiated in 2019 under the directive of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has become a flagship campaign in Türkiye’s ongoing Green Homeland initiative. The main ceremony took place in Ankara, with President Erdoğan leading the effort alongside thousands of volunteers. Concurrently, saplings were planted in 922 districts across all 81 provinces, underscoring the nationwide commitment to expanding Türkiye’s forest cover.
Yumaklı emphasized the campaign’s broad reach and sustained momentum: “Under the Green Homeland Campaign, we are working closely with numerous institutions to maintain year-round forestation activities. The National Forestation Day remains the most significant event, involving citizens from all walks of life.”
Highlighting the progress since the campaign’s inception, Yumaklı noted that the initial 2019 event saw 1.2 million participants planting 13.8 million saplings. This year’s efforts surpassed those figures with 1,280,491 participants planting 14,914,000 saplings, breaking previous records. “I extend my sincere thanks to all citizens contributing to this meaningful movement, from young to old, and especially to our president for his unwavering support,” he said.
In a forward-looking statement, the minister revealed that the sapling planting target for the campaign has been increased from 550 million to 600 million, reflecting the government’s ambition to elevate Türkiye’s environmental stewardship to new heights. “Our country aims to set a global example in forest conservation and forestation, and we are confident that we will continue to achieve new records in this vital area,” Yumaklı added.
National Forestation Day was established on Nov. 6, 2019, when President Erdoğan officially designated Nov. 11 as the annual nationwide tree-planting day. Since 2000, Türkiye has planted 7.5 billion saplings and seeds, expanding forest coverage to 23.4 million hectares — approximately 30% of the country’s land area. Between 2020 and 2025, Türkiye advanced from sixth to fourth place globally in forest area expansion and currently ranks third worldwide in annual tree-planting efforts.
Last year’s sapling planting target was set at 550 million, but this year, the government increased the goal to 600 million saplings and seeds. On this occasion, provinces across the country contributed significantly, Izmir planted 15,000 saplings in a 100-decare area affected by fire, with 115,000 saplings planned across 21 locations, Aydın established the “Forest of Mercy” with 7,000 saplings, Manisa planted 35,000 saplings across 16 districts, including 8,000 in fire-damaged Kayapınar, and Denizli planted 15,100 saplings in 17 sites.
The campaign also honors the sacrifice of 160 forestry workers who lost their lives combating wildfires, including 17 during the previous summer.
