Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

During the meeting, emphasis was made on the need for increasing high tech foreign capital in order to increase Turkey’s high tech exports and that the future holds important opportunities for healthcare and pharmaceutical investments.

Speaking at the “Healthcare Sector Policy Seminar” at the TOBB Twin Towers, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, in regards to financial relations between Turkey and the USA, pointed out that they share a singular vision as state and private sector, stating that these joint organizations would contribute greatly to the development of sectors.

Stating that Turkey’s economy is undergoing an important transformation, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “In the past, we transitioned from low tech production to medium tech production. Our goal now is to transition to high tech. We want to focus on product development and added value generation. The healthcare sector is one of the sectors we concentrate on.”

Stating that they want to utilize the pharmaceutical sector as a catalyst for the transfer and dissemination of biotech in Turkey, Hisarcıklıoğlu reported that they would be focusing on this sector in the future.

Additionally Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that they are quite aware of the issues effecting American companies at the moment and said, “Our pharmaceutical sector requires specific incentives in order to receive more productive investments. We are following up on these diligently.”

 - Minister Yılmaz: Intellectual Property Rights Law will pass with all due haste

Development Minister Cevdet Yılmaz pointed to the importance of state-private sector cooperation. Stressing the importance of high added value production, Yılmaz stated that they put priority on healthcare which is among the 25 fields of reform.

Reporting that incentives would be implemented for medical equipment and pharmaceutical production Minister Yılmaz emphasized that they would prioritize domestic medical equipment production.

Minister Yılmaz also stated that the Intellectual Property Rights Law waiting in parliament would pass with all due haste.

TEPAV Director Güven Sak gave a presentation on the necessity of high tech production, emphasizing the need for transitioning exports to high tech, pointing out that new cooperation mechanisms for technology transfer are necessary.

US Chamber of Commerce representatives stated that they are convinced Turkey would be able to escape the medium income trap, pointing to innovation and investment as important tools to this end.