TOBB Council of Chambers of Maritime Trade Meeting was realized in TOBB headquarters in Ankara with the participation of Minister of Transport and Communications Binali Yıldırım. M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu said that in the period before the global crisis, employment in shipbuilding industry and exports in the maritime sector had shown significant rates of increase.
Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that maritime and shipbuilding sectors are the most affected sectors by the global economic crisis and had lost two thirds of their employment and exports in this period.
“The target is to be ready for the days that the world trade will revive”
TOBB President said that they aim to be ready for the days that the world trade will revive after the global crisis and reminded that the target for the year 2023 is 500 billion dollars of exports, 500 billion dollars of imports and 1 trillion dollars of foreign trade. Hisarcıklıoğlu said “Then, we need to improve and expand our shipbuilding industry, maritime transport and ports. In this context, we expect that a special place will be given to our maritime sector in the investment incentive system.”
“The potential is high but incentive is needed”
Hisarcıklıoğlu told that not only EU member states but also China, Korea, Brazil, India and Russia which are competitors to Turkey, have developed direct and indirect supports to shipbuilding industry, however in Turkey, this sector mostly stayed out of the scope of incentives.
Hisarcıklıoğlu said maritime transport and shipbuilding sectors are the pride of Turkey in global competition and they need incentives similar to their global competitors. Hisarcıklıoğlu said:
“In the last 5 years, the freight carried by sea transport is increased 3 percent annually in Europe and 19 percent in Turkey. Transit transportation in particular doubles every year. In 2009 which was the year of the crisis, ship transportation decreased 12 percent in EU, and only 5 percent in Turkey. This way we get ahead of Germany in transportation. This shows our potential in shipping sector. But excluding the fuel transportation, we still do not have a port to be in the first 20 ports of Europe. Thus, we should promote shipbuilding industry, maritime transport and port investments in coordination”
Code of Obligations
Hisarcıklıoğlu also mentioned Code of Obligations in his speech, saying “I thank to the government and opposition parties that ensured the New Code of Obligations became a law in the Assembly rapidly. This dialog and settlement in politics became a source of morale for the private sector. I also believe that the new Code of Commerce will become a law in the near future.”
Minister of Transport and Communications Binali Yıldırım
In his speech, Minister of Transport and Communications Binali Yıldırım said that the aim is that Turkey to reach the targeted point with its economy and transportation.
Minister Yıldırım stated that the Council is carrying out the last meeting of 2010 and problems of the sector and the studies that were realized will be evaluated in this meeting. Yıldırım also stated that the global crisis is still continues though its effects are decreasing.
After the speeches the meeting continued closed to press.
