Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Comprised of 30 Unions and 80,000 members, the Building Materials Suppliers Federation (TİMFED) held its 5^th General Assembly at the TOBB Union Center. The opening speeches of the General Assembly were given by TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, Environment and Urbanism Minister İdris Güllüce, Labor and Social Security Deputy Minister Halil Etyemez and TİMFED Chairman Tahir Tellioğlu.

TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu touched on the problems of the construction sector, “With the support of the Environment and Urbanism Ministry, we must establish a self-governing structure concerning the construction sector within TOBB.”

Pointing out the second important issue as the need for the simplification and streamlining of the dozens of laws regulating the sector, the TOBB President said, “You notice 8 or 10 laws right away. Having to know so many laws, if one law doesn’t get us, the other one does. All municipalities work differently as well. There are different interpretations. We must ensure consolidation and simplification in this regard. The rules must be easy to understand in order obey and enforce.”

- Contractors are troubled but hopeful for the future

Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that TOBB regularly conducts polls in order to gauge the needs of its members and said, “In regards to the last year, the optimistic and pessimistic approaches to business were approximately equal for all sectors. The construction sector, however, had a more noticeable split with positive perception was at 21% with negative increasing to 41%. This shows that the sector was negatively impacted in the recent period.

When asked for their worst problem, it was stated that costs had increased greatly. 87% said cost inflation during the last year while only 37% said that their prices increased more than costs. This means that 50% of the sector did not reflect this increase in their costs to the market.

Cost pressure has become a significant problem for the sector. Costs of employment and insurance burdens pointed out as major problems. Additionally there are problems with revenue collection as well as having difficulty making their own payments. The ratio of those stating that they think the economy will improve in the next year is 43% while those saying it will get worse is only 13%. This shows that the construction sector is continuing to construct and invest in Turkey’s future.”

- “Minister Güllüce is aware of the problems”

Stating that he himself has also worked on a build-sell basis, Hisarcıklıoğlu said that he understands the problems of the sector intimately. Pointing out that Environment and Urbanism Minister İdris Güllüce is also a civil engineer closely acquainted with the sector, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “It is an honor to be hosting one of the architects responsible for bringing a modern approach to municipal administration to Turkey. He approaches all of our problems in the most constructive manner. I would like to thank him for his solution-focused and arbitration oriented. I am sure that many of the issues brought up during this meeting will be resolved quickly.”

- The sector’s momentum throughout the last decade is important

Pointing out the importance of the construction sector, Hisarcıklıoğlu reported that it makes up 13% of the world’s economy, projected to grow by 70% until 2020 to reach a volume of 12.7 trillion USD. He stated that the construction sector is also very important for Turkey, acting as one of its primary driving economic forces.

Stressing the fact that the sector has gained significant momentum in the last 10 years, Hisarcıklıoğlu reported that the sector’s annual income tax has increased by 6 times compared to 2004 with the construction sector growing by 7% in just 2013.

“The construction sector’s success is not limited to Turkey either; our contractors have taken on projects internationally, leaving many competitors behind.

They have completed work of such quality that the mention of construction brings to mind Turkey. In 2001, the total volume of construction project worth globally was 2.4 billion USD. Today it has reached 31.3 billion USD.”

- There is more profit to be had in this sector

Thanking everyone who contributed to the sector, Hisarcıklıoğlu congratulated Tahir Tellioğlu on his work, “I must mention my dear friend, Tahir, the Chairman of TİMFED and İMKON (Construction Contractors Confederation). TİMFED, which started off as a union of the contractors from 5 provinces in 2006 now spans 30 unions and approximately 80,000 members while İMKON as an umbrella organization is comprised of 52 unions and 150,000 contractors. This is a very important achievement. As I say at every opportunity ‘There’s prosperity in unity; anguish in dissent’. The success of the construction sector reminds us of the importance of unity and solidarity.

The construction sector is very important for Turkey and will be increasingly important in the future. As our people become richer, demand will increase. They will want housing, malls, infrastructure and superstructure. There’s more profit to be had in this sector.”

- Other speakers

Environment and Urbanism Minister İdris Güllüce touched on the cost of rebuilding earthquake-prone structures, immigration as well as the international perception of AKP.

Labor and Social Security Deputy Minister Halil Etyemez praised AKP’s works for Turkey and touched on the issue of growth.

TİMFED Chairman Tahir Tellioğlu pointed out that the construction sector is enormous with its share of significant problems; that the Construction Contractors’ Chambers Union Bill has not been passed in 44 years, emphasizing the need to bring definition to the profession and set its standards.

Tellioğlu stated that there are over 300,000 contractors in Turkey with a majority of them working to further the profession through good business ethics.