Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu and Minister Yazıcı were greeted by the members of the Rize Resident Association.

Afterwards, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu visited the İzeltaş Factory and toured the facilities.

Hisarcıklıoğlu then visited the Aegean Region Chamber of Industry (EBSO) and attended the EBSO Joint Profession Committee Meeting with the Minister of Customs and Commerce Hayati Yazıcı.

Speaking at the meeting, TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that one of the reasons he was in İzmir was to celebrate the holiday.

Emphasizing that this year is the 60th anniversary of the establishment of TOBB, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “This is akin to a holiday for us. Holidays are celebrated with the family. As the TOBB family, I’ve come to celebrate the holiday with you.”
Stating that he is happy with the EXPO 2020 efforts, the TOBB President said, “When it comes to EXPO, I am a resident of İzmir as well. I am ready to whatever duty falls to us to this end both as TOBB and Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu. İzmir is undertaking this in an institutionalized manner. This cannot be achieved without working together. We must come together for a single goal.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that chambers and exchanges have come a long way in the last 10 years, the TOBB President went on, “Turkey is the third fastest growing country. This is a historical achievement for us. The real hero behind this success is the private sector which invested 150 billion Dollars. The public administration’s contribution to growth amounted to 0.4%. The disparity between exports and imports has come down to 8.5%. As the private sector, we have provided employment to 1.3 million people. This is a record.”

- “Those investing to address the current deficit will receive 5th Zone incentives”

Stating that the unemployment rates are decreasing in Turkey, Hisarcıklıoğlu reported that the current deficit remains a problem. TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu said that there have been decisions made to this end in incentives, “I would like to thank the government. There used to be a lot of arguments flaring up every time incentives were announced –none this time. Before, the government would say, ‘I know best, not you,’ whereas this time the decisions were made together. In this regard, this is revolutionary. Those investing to address the current deficit will receive 5th Zone incentives. We must take good advantage of this opportunity.”

- Minister Yazıcı

Minister of Customs and Commerce, Hayati Yazıcı said, “I would suggest that you take negative comments regarding the business world in İzmir with a pinch of salt. There is an open dialogue in our understanding of government. Everyone must remain open to dialogue.

In regards to İzmir’s EXPO 2020 candidacy, Hayati Yazıcı said that EXPO is Turkey’s project as a whole and that they are working to make this into reality.

- EBSO President Yorgancılar

TOBB Board Member and EBSO Board Chairman Ender Yorgancılar stated that they successfully enacted the strategic plan of the chamber in the last 3 years, attaining customer satisfaction and information security systems documentation as well as implementing various projects.

EBSO Council President Mehmet Tiryaki said, “If İzmir is selected for EXPO, our city will become an investment base. There will be projects that will make İzmir soar for the next 5 years.”
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