Bozkurt flood recovery enables local entrepreneurship

In the Bozkurt district of Kastamonu, Turkey, the reconstruction efforts following the devastating floods of August 11, 2021, are providing new opportunities for local residents. The flood, which occurred in the Western Black Sea region, caused significant loss of life and destroyed much of the local infrastructure.

Şükriye Görgü, a local resident who lost her job when her previous workplace closed due to the disaster, has successfully transitioned from unemployment to business ownership. Following the flood, AFAD provided temporary container shops to facilitate commerce. Görgü operated a small shoe shop in one of these containers for approximately five months to stabilize her financial situation.

With the completion of permanent commercial spaces built by TOKİ, Görgü has since moved her business into a newly constructed storefront. She noted that while the community still remembers those lost in the disaster, the physical and economic wounds are being healed as the district becomes more developed and people begin to return.