01.09.2023 Posof Ardahan
The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB) President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, together with Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat, attended the opening ceremony of the modernized Türközü Customs Gate in Posof district of Ardahan.
In his speech at the
opening ceremony, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Today, we are taking a very important
step that will connect Ardahan and our country to the Caucasus and Asia in a
stronger way and bring more prosperity and wealth to these lands. We are proud
and happy for our country and our business world.”
Stating that there is
money where there is trade, wealth where there is money, and peace where there
is wealth, TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We aimed to turn the route of
trade to this geography. With the Türkgözü Border Gate, we took one more step
towards this goal. With the positive approach and approval of our government,
we realized a first in the world. We started to modernize the land customs
gates with the build-operate-transfer model. While doing this, we did not
impose a single penny cost on the state. We did not spend a single penny from
the public budget. Moreover, the tax revenues of the state increased
exponentially thanks to the gates operating more efficiently and voluminously.”
- 12 customs gates renovated
Stating that they have
completely renovated 12 border gates by using the most advanced technology and
brought them to the country's economy, Hisarcıklıoğlu reported that waiting
times have been reduced by half at the modernized gates. Hisarcıklıoğlu noted
that the volume of passage increased exponentially. “For all these, as the
Chamber-Exchange community, we have invested 660 million dollars,” said the
President of TOBB: “We also invested 180 million liras to modernize the
Türkgözü customs gate. In other words, we saved the state from spending so much
money. From the income obtained from these gates, our state has generated 340
million dollars more tax revenue. In other words, as the Chamber and Commodity
Exchange community, we have brought 1 billion dollars to the coffers of our
state. Not only the state, but also our private sector and our members won from
this. 85 percent of the exports made by road from our country pass through
these modernized gates. Thanks to the new gates, the waiting times of trucks
carrying goods have shortened. Our private sector saved on freight costs. We
have also increased the prestige of our country with our modern, safe and
comfortable facilities, which are the first visible face of Türkiye.”
- Showed as an exemplary project in the world
Hisarcıklıoğlu said
that the customs gate modernization projects they implemented in partnership
with the public and private sectors were highly appreciated all over the world
and added: “For the first time, a project of Türkiye was selected and shown as
the best example worldwide by the United Nations. They said to the whole world
'if you are going to make your border crossings faster, if you are going to
make them safer, do it like Türkiye did'. We have reached the point of
exporting our experience and knowledge to the world. We have started a new
initiative together with the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry. We aimed
to modernize the land customs gates in 57 Islamic countries that are members of
the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. With this joint venture, which will
soon become operational, we will make our name known in global markets. As
TOBB, we had previously modernized the Çıldır-Aktaş gates in Ardahan and Sarp
gates in Artvin on the Georgian border. As of today, we will be more strongly
connected to the Caucasus and Central Asia, especially Georgia, with Türkgözü.”
- Trade Minister Ömer Bolat
In his speech here,
Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat gave information about the modernization of
customs gates and reminded that the Ministry is responsible for the management
of 152 customs gates. Stating that they have modernized 13 customs gates in
cooperation with GTI, Minister Bolat emphasized the importance of customs gates
for increasing foreign trade.
Stating that Türkiye is
located at the center of a very important corridor in terms of international
trade, Bolat said that the Türkgözü gate is a very important point connecting
Türkiye to the Caucasus and Asia.
Stating that increasing
the capacity of Türkiye's ports, gates and transportation infrastructure is of
great importance, Minister Polat said that the government has realized very
important projects for these works. Bolat reminded that Türkiye's exports
amounted to 254 billion dollars last year and said that they maintained the
same figures this year despite the negative effects of the earthquake. Stating
that customs gates have a very important function in Türkiye's 620 billion
dollar foreign trade, Bolat pointed out the importance of speed in these
customs gates.
In his speech, Arif
Parmaksız, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Customs and Tourism
Enterprises AŞ (GTİ), said that they are proud to add Türkgözü Customs Gate to
the modernization started in 2005 with Habur and Cilvegözü Customs Gates. He
said that this modernization will make the trade and human movements between
the two countries faster and more reliable.