Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu announced that a very beneficial process for Bursa and Turkey has been kicked off along with Minister Işık, “As Industrialists we always complained about the fact that the public administration did not give preference for national businesses in its public tenders, contrary to other countries which promote domestic production. This way, their SMEs are supported in their growth as well as the country’s economic growth as a whole.”

Pointing out the fact that public tenders are an important tool for development, Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the proper management of public tenders would yield better results than billions of liras in incentives; being a better incentive than monetary incentives.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that there was a decision to implement 15% in price advantage for domestic products which, unfortunately, was never properly implemented. 

Reporting that in order to overcome the problems facing them in this endeavor to support domestic production, a very significant work has been undertaken under the leadership of the Industry Minister Fikri Işık, Hisarcıklıoğlu went on thank the government and Minister Işık for finally bringing this about.

The TOBB President reported that the public administration buys a volume of goods equaling 70 billion liras in worth and said, “There’s great opportunity in this. This is an extraordinary opportunity for our traders and industrialists who are thinking of stepping into industry. This is revolutionary. This is the greatest incentive, bar none.”

Stressing the point that public administration is now obligated to show preference for products which are at least 51% domestically produced, reporting that domestic goods certification would be given by chambers and exchanges.

Reporting that it would be possible to identify mid and high tech products with this policy and provide them with proper support, Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that this would lead to new development opportunities for national industry as well as SMEs, making it possible to elevate Turkish industry to the next level.

Stating that all tram cars in Prague are made by Skoda, by Siemens in Germany and by Hyundai in Seoul, Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that there are trams built in Bursa and that a country which aims to produce its own automobiles, which produces its own airplanes should not be importing trams.

- Minister Işık

Minister for Science, Industry and Technology Fikri Işık emphasized the importance of stability for economic growth and development stating that despite the successes of recent times, there is still potential for greater success.

Stressing the importance of incentives for national development, Minister Işık reported that changes would be implemented into the incentive system. Minister Işık stated that even if the grant budget of the ministry ran out halfway through the year, they would be able to request additional budget as the sector has one of the fastest turnarounds in the economy. He went on to stated that there would be various incentives and advantages for companies such as the domestic product certificate and the tech product certificate.

Minister Işık also provided information on the TSE’s identical product qualification which would support domestic production of goods identical in specification to their foreign alternatives, enabling charging appropriate prices for domestically produced goods identical in specification and quality to their foreign produced counterparts. 

- İbrahim Burkay

TOBB Board Member and Bursa TSO Chairman İbrahim Burkay spoke in regards to the projects and endeavors they’ve undertaken to contribute to Bursa’s and Turkey’s economy.

Burkay touched on the importance of R&D and innovation, pointing out the significance of Turkey’s rise to 45th place from 71st in global competition but that this was not sufficient for a country aiming for the top 10.