Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Koçak congratulated the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry on its 120^th anniversary.

Stating that Turkey and Bulgaria have similar customs and traditions which makes them an unbreakable piece of the Balkan region, Koçak said, “Turkey and Bulgaria are two neighbors and allies, who have improved their relations in all fields, played active roles in regional cooperation processes. Turkey is among the first five trading partners of Bulgaria. On the other side, Bulgaria is currently Turkey’s one of the largest trading partner among the EU member states.

The bilateral trade volume between Turkey and Bulgaria figures amounting to 5 billion USD. We should enhance the bilateral relationship between our countries. I believe that these collaborations lead to us strong, multilateral relations in Balkan region. As Balkan countries, we should focus on promoting entrepreneurship. We should view entrepreneurship as a source of wealth and job creation.

Increasing the number of entrepreneurs in the Balkan region will decrease unemployment and bring prosperity to the region. Most dynamic societies in the world are the ones that have the largest group of entrepreneurs, plus the economic and legal structure to encourage and motivate entrepreneurs.”

- Call to support SMEs

Stating that to promote entrepreneurship, SMEs should be supported on a national and global level, Koçak said:

“As you know, Turkey is chairing the G20 in 2015, the premier forum for global economic cooperation, bringing together the world’s major economies.

As the president of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), Mr. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu has been given the honor of chairing the B20 in 2015.

One novelty brought by B-20 Turkey is the establishment of SMEs and Entrepreneurship taskforce.

Bearing in mind that SME development and growing entrepreneurship are the key elements to raise the competitiveness of developing economies, we have made this breakthrough.

We will ensure that the voice of SMEs and non-G20 economies are heard.

We believe that the B20 should be open to anyone who wants to contribute in the interests of the business world.

For us, both multinational companies and SMEs, developed and developing countries, are all very important.

Besides, I would also like to underline that, in order to serve and lead the business effectively, the chamber system should be stronger.

We, all have to defend the chamber movement in our countries in support of entrepreneurship.

Stronger chamber means better and more services to the companies; and improved competitiveness. In short, stronger chamber system means stronger national economies.”