Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Friday said he aims for 30 per cent of the north’s land to be covered by forest.

Speaking during a visit to the north’s artificial ‘Welcome Baby Memorial Forest’, where one tree has been planted for every baby born in the north since 2022, he said that at present, around 20 per cent of the north’s land is covered by forest.

He added that thus far at the ‘Welcome Baby Memorial Forest’, which is located between the Kyrenia district village of Diorios and nearby Kapouti, around 10,000 saplings have been planted, with an average of 2,000 babies being born in the north each year.

“My greatest wish and desire is for this project to continue, regardless of who the president is,” he said, in a nod to the forthcoming Turkish Cypriot leadership election in October.

He also made reference to the 2020 fires in the region the new forest has been planted, saying it is “extremely important to take fire precautions on time”, calling on the north’s electricity authority Kib-Tek, the north’s forestry department, and other institutions to “start implementing fire precautions without delay”.

‘Agriculture minister’ Huseyin Cavus also spoke about the 2020 fires, saying they destroyed 7,500 acres of forest.

He also said that across the north this winter, a total of 350,000 saplings have been planted, and said “each individual has a responsibility to take care of each of the trees planted”.