Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Speaking at the opening of the Service Honor Letter and Plaque Ceremony, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, “We’ve written a marvelous success story in the last 30 years. We have become Europe’s 7th largest economy. Believe us when we say with this resolution and accumulation, we will grow even faster. Observe, we have grown Turkey more than 1.5 times in just the last 10 years.

-Turkey has become an industry giant

Hisarcıklıoğlu, speaking about the great changes Turkey and the Turkish private sector has gone through in the last 30 years, “Thirty years ago Turkey was the very definition of an agricultural country. The 3 billion dollars worth of goods we managed to export was almost completely agricultural produce. Today, Turkey has become the industry giant of its region. In the geography between Italy and China, the strongest industry belongs to Turkey. Today the private sector exports over 20.000 products to over 200 countries. Turkey has brought its export volume to 130 billion dollars. 94% of this is industrial goods and 60% are exported to the world’s most developed countries.

Our contractors have completed very sizeable projects, worth 200 billion dollars, in 82 countries in the last 30 years.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu went on to say, “We own the second largest contractor sector in the world after China. Our entrepreneurs provide the best in the services sector in Europe. You’ll see it when you go to hotels abroad. None have the service quality that we do. It is for this that we have become the 7th most preferred tourism location in the world. Thirty years ago only 300.000 tourists come to this country. Now 30 million tourists visit us yearly. In the field of logistics we have the second largest overland transportation fleet after the USA. We are taking great strides in the shipping field and rising there as well.”

-The true architects of the success story

Expressing his gratitude to everyone who received a reward, Hisarcıklıoğlu went on to say, “They are the true architects of the success of which I speak. Because they were the ones producing and trading before production and trade had a name in this country. When traders had no esteem and nobody would let anyone but a civil servant marry their daughters, they had set foot on this path.

They shouldered the burdens of this business. They went through crisis, had problems but they did not give up. They showed what an honest trader is. They taught the joys of prospering and enabling others to do the same, of providing work and food to people. They were role models for us. As these examples go on, as the number of entrepreneurs increased in Turkey, as the numbers of our business men and women increased in Turkey, we prospered, our country prospered. It is so that this success story was written.

-“The biggest capital is solidarity”

Stating that the community of the Union of Chambers of Commodity Exchanges of Turkey is a very large family, Hisarcıklıoğlu said that the Turkish private sector met under a single roof. The TOBB President said, “We can make our voices heard through this solidarity. In the future this solidarity and singularity of mind will be our greatest capital.”

Stating that the success of the Turkish private sector has been example abroad, Hisarcıklıoğlu went on to say, “OECD recommends our Chamber-Exchange system to other countries. We have become a role model, especially in terms of developing private sectors. All of us are like the stones of this building. This building will stand as long as these stones stand together.”

-“Turkey, shining star”

Saying that he believes that Turkey and the Turkish private sector will be the shining star of the next age, Hisarcıklıoğlu went on to say that as Turkey prospers so does Turkey also help its region to prosper. Reminding everyone that they planned to be one of the 10 largest economies by 2023, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We will exceed 500 billion dollar in exports and 2 trillion dollars in national income. And this will be as a result of the investments of the Turkish private sector and the entrepreneurs in this hall and those who follow their examples. I would like to extend my gratitude to our Esteemed President for his constant support in your presence. For his great services in solving the problems of our private sector I would also like to thank our Minister of Industry and Trade”.

-President Abdullah Gül

President Gül stated that the service honor letters and plaques given to the businessmen fulfilling their 10th, 20th, 30th and 50th years of service were symbolic but carried great value.
Stating that Turkey’s development comes from the private sector, Gül spoke, “It is the business world that makes Turkey bigger, developed and a more modern country.” Gül stated that Turkey understood this as a continuation from governmental to semi-governmental to private sector’s leadership in the field.

Explaining that financial and governmental policies are now designed with this in mind, Gül said, “Because it is evident that resources are spent more efficiently by the private sector. There is a large amount of waste when the government takes a hand in it. But when the owner of a business must do something they will do their utmost in attaining maximum efficiency.”
President Gül emphasized the point that businessmen produced, payed taxes, made exports and satisfied the people’s needs was why the government was aware of the private sector and supported it.

Stating that big and structural changes were taking place in Turkey, Gül said that businessmen would play an important role in the restructuring of Turkey.

Expressing his trust that businessmen would be of great service to the country as they were in the past, Gül said, “You will prosper while at the same time Turkey prospers.” Saying that he meets Chambers and Exchanges businessmen on his provincial visits, Gül stated that he learns what’s happening and how for the horizons of provinces reach from businessmen.

-“Moving from empiric to educated”

Stating his pride in the private sector and their interest in its troubles, Gül spoke to the businessmen present:

“I believe that you will be the architect of a developing Turkey. The government will liberate you to do greater and bigger things. You change yourselves as you recognize this. You move from empiricism to education. You enlarge scales; seek for different qualities in those that you employ. You undertake very big projects outside of Turkey.”

Conveying his best wishes for the TOBB General Assembly, Gül also extended them to the businessmen present. After his speech Gül presented the delegates who had fulfilled their 10th, 20th and 30th years as TOBB delegates and Istanbul Commerce Exchange Board Member Nejat Ekrem Basmacı who had fulfilled his 52nd year.

-Chambers and Exchanges erected stands in TOBB’s garden

President Gül, Minister of Industry and Trade Nihat Ergün and TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu visited the stands displaying regional goods set up in TOBB’s garden after the award ceremony. President Gül was presented various gifts.

-Awards and Plaques

10 Years of service
Bilal KORKMAZ  Alanya Commerce and Industry Chamber Board Member
Galip SAKDER Bursa Commerce and Industry Chamber Board Member
Metin CEYLAN Bursa Commerce and Industry Chamber Board Member
Mustafa Kemal SÖZEN Karapınar Commerce and Industry Chamber Board President
M. Telat ÇARIKÇI Lüleburgaz Commerce and Industry Chamber Board President
Erol DERİCİ Sinop Commerce and Industry Chamber Board President
Hasan İMAN Balıkesir Commerce and Industry Chamber Board Member
Süleyman Ersin AKTUĞ Ceyhan Commerce Chamber Board Member
Jan TAŞÇI Mersin Maritime Trade Chamber President
Sırrı KARAHANCI Ankara Commerce Exchange Board Member
Ali MARMARA Aydın Commerce Exchange Board Member
Zeki EVREN Burdur Commerce and Industry Chamber Vice-President
Ahmet KARAOĞLU Eskişehir Commerce Exchange Board Member
Enver KOÇAK Gaziantep Commerce Exchange Board Member
Hakkı KILIÇ Gaziantep Commerce Exchange Board Member
Kasım HOROZ Gaziantep Commerce Exchange Board Member
İsmail Yalçın YILMAZ İzmir Commerce Exchange Board Member
Ekrem İŞCAN Karacabey Commerce Exchange Board Member

20 Years of service
İsmail FERGANA  İnegöl Trade and Industry Chamber Board Member

30 Years of service
Mehmet ÖZÇİLOĞLU Kilis Trade and Industry Chamber Board President
Ali Osman ULUSOY Trabzon Trade and Industry Chamber Board President
 A. Rona YIRCALI  Balıkesir Chamber of Industry Board Member

Fulfilling his 52nd year, TOBB Delegate and Istanbul Commerce Exchange Honorary President Nejat Ekrem BASMACI