Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

In his speech here, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu said that Uzbekistan is the land where Turkic culture and science developed.

Explaining that scientists such as Biruni, Ulug Bey, Ibn-i Sina, Harezmi, Ali Kusçu, who enlightened the world and expanded the horizons of humanity, were raised in Uzbekistan, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Our spiritual leaders such as Imam Bukhari, Imam Maturidi, Imam Tirmizi are the gifts of this place, of these lands. Their legacy continues to enlighten not only Uzbekistan but also Anatolia. Tashkent and Ankara, Samarkand and Konya, Bukhara and Bursa, Khiva and Edirne have been breathing this spiritual air for centuries. Therefore, Uzbekistan and Türkiye are two states and one nation.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that he was happy with the development of relations between the countries following the election of Şevket Mirziyoyev to the Presidency of Uzbekistan, and that good relations at the level of leaders are directly reflected in business relations.

Pointing out that the economic reforms carried out in Uzbekistan have made it attractive for investment, Hisarcıklıoğlu continued as follows:

“I know that entrepreneurship and the private sector play an important role in reforms. In this respect, strengthening the chamber system will contribute significantly to the deepening and implementation of the reforms. One of the important areas of the reform process is to increase competitiveness and create a favorable environment for exports. In this respect, the services to be provided to exporters are important. The necessary support, including training, should be provided by the chamber system to companies wishing to export. Developing and supporting the chamber system in this respect would be a correct and useful step.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that he is proud of the progress in Uzbekistan's economy and that the country's economy has almost doubled in 7 years, “Türkiye-Uzbekistan relations continue to develop. Our trade has nearly doubled in the last five years. We are happy that the preferential trade agreement started to be implemented as of July 1. I believe that our trade will continue to increase with the preferential trade agreement.”

Emphasizing that the business volume of Turkish contractors has more than doubled in the last five years, Hisarcıklıoğlu said:

“Our investments also continue to increase. We need more mutual trade and investment. We are aware of this. For this, we will continue to attach importance to platforms that will bring our members together. We established the Turkish-Uzbek Chamber of Commerce and Industry Forum for this purpose. I would like to thank the Co-Chairs Osman Doğan Şahlan and Islam Casimov. They will work more in the coming period. With the memorandum of understanding we are about to sign, we will determine our sectoral priorities as TOBB and Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry. We will increase our mutual investments and cooperation by focusing on these sectors. We will share our experiences mutually.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that TOBB ETU Tashkent will give its first graduates this year and that similar partnerships between Türkiye and Uzbekistan are continuing in wider areas and that he is proud of this.

- Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz also stated that Türkiye is continuing its economic growth and said, “The latest indicators are the clearest signs of the strength and reliability of the Turkish economy. The Turkish economy has grown at an average annual rate of 5.4 percent in the last 20 years. If you consider that the world grew at an average annual rate of 3.6 percent in the same period, you can see how important this performance is. For 20 years, we have outperformed the world performance by 1.8 percent every year. In the first 9 months of 2023, we have a growth rate of 4.7 percent.”

Reminding that Türkiye ranks third among the countries that Uzbekistan exports the most and fifth in terms of imports, Yılmaz said, “We will hopefully carry these ranks to higher levels with the efforts of our private sector. On the one hand, we are fighting inflation to ensure price stability, on the other hand, we continue to support investment, exports, employment and production. We have reshaped our economic policies from a consumption-oriented growth structure to an investment and export-oriented growth composition. In this context, I would like to express that we are ready to provide all kinds of support to our exporters and investors. Especially investments that increase added value and bring export opportunities are very valuable for us.”

Stating that bilateral trade with Uzbekistan has reached 3.5 billion dollars, Yılmaz said, “When we look at our investments, we have investments in Uzbekistan amounting to one and a half billion dollars. More than 1,700 companies continue their activities in many different regions of Uzbekistan. However, these are not enough. More companies need to make mutual investments. Uzbekistan should not be seen as a market of only 35 million people. On the one hand, there is the Customs Union. It is in a very strategic position in a very wide geography. Those who invest in Uzbekistan have the opportunity to sell goods to a much larger market. The same is true for Türkiye. Türkiye not only has a domestic market of 86 million people, but also has a Customs Union with the EU, has many relations, and has bilateral free trade agreements. Uzbek companies investing in Türkiye also have the opportunity to access a much larger market. Our target has been set by our Presidents and it is 5 billion dollars. Hopefully, together with Kuchkarov, with the support of the business world, we will reach this target as soon as possible and set new targets.”

Noting that the Preferential Trade Agreement, which entered into force in July, is a step that he said is important for the 5 billion dollar target, Yılmaz said, “We will see its effects together. But the number of products is not enough. Our institutions will hopefully add new products every year and bring it to a much broader agreement.”

Stating that Turkish contractors are doing important work in Uzbekistan, Yılmaz said, “They have undertaken 262 projects. The total size of these has reached approximately 7 billion dollars. This is a growing activity that increases every year. I believe that this period will increase even more in the future. With the reforms of Şevket Mirziyoyev, Uzbekistan has turned into a construction site. No matter which city you go to, every part of Uzbekistan, from Tashkent to Bukhara, is a construction site with infrastructure and superstructure projects. We expect our contractors to get a share from this in the coming period. Our cooperation is based on the win-win principle.”

- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of Uzbekistan Jamshid Kuchkarov

Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan and Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov said in his speech here that reliable investment and privileges for Turkish companies can be found in Uzbekistan, “Whatever projects you have, whatever goals you have, you can find them in Uzbekistan. I believe that this Business Forum will be good for developing the relations of entrepreneurs between our companies. The economies of Uzbekistan and Türkiye are not competitors. They complement each other. Over the last 5 years, the trade between the two states has increased one and a half times,” he said.

Kuchkarov stated that pharmaceuticals, technology, jewelry and shoemaking are attractive topics for Uzbekistan and said, “We are trying to create various town squares especially in Uzbekistan related to weaving. We want to encourage businessmen in four different provinces of Uzbekistan, especially related to weaving in provinces such as Andijan and Tashkent. We also provide them with opportunities in terms of credit. Especially in terms of state contribution, we provide 8 percent credit facilities. We recommend that business people here benefit from such opportunities. Whichever institution and organization will evaluate our proposal on weaving, I would like to happily announce that the 200 million dollar loan to be given to them will be given at a rate of 8 percent.”

- “The limited number of products need to be expanded”

DEIK President Nail Olpak said that Türkiye was the first state to recognize Uzbekistan and that they were proud of this.

Pointing out the importance of the friendship between the two countries, Olpak underlined that they, as the business world, have a duty for the great goals set by the Presidents of the two countries.

Referring to the preferential trade agreement that entered into force this year, Olpak said, “However, when we look as the business world, we see a very limited number of products. While both the Vice President and the esteemed Deputy Prime Minister are here, I would like to express our wish that the limited number of products should be expanded. The development of cooperation between us is more possible with rapprochement. For this, I believe that increasing the number of mutual flights will contribute to this.”

Stating that one of the potentials of Uzbekistan is tourism, Olpak said that it is important for Turkish companies to be active in areas related to the sector, especially hotels.

Olpak noted that it is very important to respond to Uzbekistan's investment needs and that they want to hold mutual meetings on 6 prominent sectors.

After the speeches, Turkish and Uzbek companies signed mutual business agreements and took a commemorative photo.