Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his family have arrived in Somalia's capital to highlight the need for greater famine relief.
The visit to war-torn Mogadishu is the first by a leader from outside Africa in almost 20 years.
The Turkish foreign minister, part of a delegation accompanying Mr Erdogan, told the BBC they wanted to break the idea that the city was a no-go area.
East Africa is suffering from its worst drought in 60 years.
The UN estimates that some 12 million people have been affected.
Somalia, where five districts have been suffering from famine, has been worst hit. Much of the country is controlled by the Islamist al-Shabab group. Al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaeda, has banned many aid agencies from its territory.
Foreign visitors to Mogadishu are a rarity, but since al-Shabab recently made what it called a tactical withdrawal from the capital, a few international politicians have come to see for themselves the thousands of famine victims pouring into the city.
'Test for civilization'
Mr Erdogan is the most high-profile figure so far to visit Mogadishu, which is now controlled by the weak interim government and by a 9,000-strong African Union force (Amisom).
Correspondents say Turkish flags are flying at the airport, the port and on one of the capital's main thoroughfares.
He travelled through the city in a bullet-proof car, in contrast to the armoured personnel carrier usually used by Somalia's President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed.
Mr Erdogan, accompanied by his wife, daughter and an entourage consisting of cabinet members and their families, said Turkey would open an embassy in Mogadishu to help distribute aid for famine victims."The tragedy going on here is a test for civilization and contemporary values," Mr Erdogan told reporters, AFP news agency reports.
His trip comes days after Turkey and other Muslim countries pledged $350m (£212m) for famine relief.
"We came to Somalia to show our solidarity with the brothers and sisters of Somalia, but this is not just for one day, we will continue to work for our brothers and sisters and we will never leave them alone," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.
The purpose of the visit was first symbolic, he said.
"There was a perception that nobody can go to Mogadishu; we try to destroy the perception. We came - many others can come."
The second aim was to provide humanitarian assistance and during this Muslim holy month of Ramadan the Turkish public had so far raised $115m for Somalia, he said.
"We are here to make a call to all leaders, to all states that they should do their part as well and not only for short-term humanitarian assistance but the long-term economic development of Somalia."
The visitors observed the distribution of Turkish aid in the internally displaced people's camps.
It was also announced that Turkey would rebuild the road to Mogadishu airport, restore a hospital, build schools and drill water wells.
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