Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Reminding that Turkey will be hosting G20 and B20, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “You are aware that Davos is a meeting place for the business community, governments, decision makers and bureaucrats. In this regard we are able to observe the great interest in the meetings and bilateral talks taking place here.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu, pointing out that the world’s economic and political is being discussed in Davos, said, “The biggest problem is uncertainty in regards to expectations of the future. We are living in a time when all that we knew to be right has been turned on its head. There is no indication that what we’ve encountered will hold true in the future either. When FED decides to implement monetary tightening, all economies of the world are affected. When the Swiss Bank decides to manipulate its money, all economies of the world are affected. The world has become a small village. The decisions of developed countries automatically affect everyone.”

B20 Turkey and TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that global trade has contributed nothing to the world’s economy in recent years, that there is a slowdown in global trade.

- Regional cooperation

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the World Trade Organization’s talks have ground to a halt and regional cooperation has seen great interest, “Such as the TTIP. Also of note is that there are no decreases in any reserves, in production, there is no increase in consumption, however petroleum prices have suddenly dropped 50%. This impacts the world economy both positively and negatively, just as it affects us. There are those who are happy with the developments and others who aren’t. Income inequality and unemployment is scary for everyone. Addressing the demands of a developing middle class in the future is being discussed. This is good in expanding horizons as well as turning your mental faculties towards global issues. Consequently we are seeking solutions to the world’s problems.”

- What will B20 Turkey do?

Hisarcıklıoğlu, in reply to a question what they will do as the B20, said, “One of our priorities is SMEs. Or rather, it is inclusivity. Unfortunately, B20 has always been only a mechanism to solve the problems of G20 businessmen on an international scale. As the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey, we decided to include SMEs into the process after our government appointed us as B20 Term Chair. This is because when you look at the ratio of SMEs in the economies of G20 countries which make up two thirds of the world’s economy, they form approximately 65% of their countries economy. This is roughly equivalent to the ratio in Turkey; it is the actual locomotive power. Unfortunately we always miss. SMEs conduct 60% of Turkey’s exports. This is an extraordinary power. SMEs are actually our partners as well, the partners of our large companies. To this end, I’ve shared this idea with our government and those outside it, I said that all SMEs throughout the world are your shareholders. They either buy goods from you or sell you goods. If you keep them out of this process, what does it matter if you try to solve your own problems without solving theirs? This was met with agreement. The most impactful development at the moment is the attention SMEs have garnered.

- 20 meetings will be held

In regards to inclusivity, there is another important point. We will be holding approximately 20 meetings during our term. Most of these will be held abroad, not in Turkey. We will consolidate these into regions. They are our natural partners. To this end we will hold meetings in the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia as well as many others; we will listen to their plights and be their voices. We have also set up 6 ‘Task Forces’, work groups.

We will also bring together a council of 100 prominent Turkish businessmen in Turkey to take on roles in the G20 and B20. We’ve seen that there is great interest in this.”