29.02.2024 Ankara
The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB) Türkiye Sectoral Economic Council was hosted by TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu with the participation of Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, Minister of Labor and Social Security Vedat Işıkhan, representatives of relevant ministries and sector council presidents.
TOBB President M. Rifat
Hisarcıklıoğlu, who spoke at the opening of the Council, stated that real
sector companies have great difficulty in accessing credit and said, “If we
want the abundance of growth to be reflected in all segments, we must support
our SMEs and ensure that they have access to appropriate financing
opportunities.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu said
that the Council is a very important platform that brings together the public
and private sectors, where problems and suggestions can be conveyed directly to
the executive authority.
Explaining that it is
very valuable, very important and gratifying that many of the issues they raised
in previous councils have been resolved in the past, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We
believe that you will bring solutions to the issues we will raise now, as you
did in the past. The most important thing for us is to see our state with us,
just like today. Of course, we are experiencing some difficulties in the
economy. But we do not give up the struggle.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu said
that the presence of experienced names at the helm of the economy gives them
morale and that they believe that together they will bring the economy to a
more solid foundation.
Stating that the growth
data announced today also increased hopes for the future, Hisarcıkıoğlu said,
“Despite the recession in global economies and the earthquake disaster of the
century, the Turkish economy continued to grow in the last quarter of the year
thanks to strong domestic consumption and completed 2023 with 4.5 percent
growth.”
- “We need to redesign the tax system”
Hisarcıklıoğlu stated
that the presidents of the sector councils collected the most demanded issues
and prepared solution proposals and listed these proposals as follows:
“Our real sector
companies have great difficulty in accessing credit. If we want the abundance
of growth to be reflected on all segments, we must support our SMEs and ensure
that they have access to appropriate financing opportunities. Second, we need
to redesign the tax system, which is becoming more complex every year, making
investment and production more difficult. Third, we have the most rigid labor
market in the OECD index, including the Scandinavian countries. Everyone
suffers from this. Our employers will be able to provide more employment. Our
legislation almost discourages this. It prevents our citizens from accessing
more job opportunities and earning more. Labor life should be looked at with an
approach that rewards employment, not penalizes it. Fourthly, investment permit
processes are very complicated. Moreover, our investors do not know and cannot
foresee what will happen to them during the investment process, which
legislative changes and different bureaucratic approaches they will face. This
prevents investments from increasing at the desired pace. Therefore, investment
permits and government incentives should be monitored and coordinated from a
single point. Fifthly, we must solve the problem of investment location in
order to pave the way for investments.”
- “A new industrial basin should be planned in the Central
Anatolia-Eastern Mediterranean belt”
Drawing attention to
the distribution of industrial investments in the country's surface area,
Hisarcıklıoğlu continued his words as follows:
“In Germany, 4 percent,
in Italy 2.8 percent, and even the OECD average is 2.4 percent. In order to
survive in global competition, our industry operates in an area that is one tenth
of its global competitors. A master plan for increasing industrial land should
be prepared and financing solutions for land purchase and building construction
should be developed. Thus, our industrialists should utilize their limited
capital by investing in more productive areas. In this context, a new
industrial basin should be planned in the Central Anatolia-Eastern
Mediterranean belt.”
- “We trust our ministers' executive and reformist way of
doing business”
Hisarcıklıoğlu reminded
that there was a very large earthquake last year, which is considered the
“disaster of the century”, and said, “With the new industrial basin, we can
reduce the risk in Marmara on the one hand, and at the same time, we can open
up space in Marmara for high-tech and higher value-added investments.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu
underlined that the business world wants predictability above all and expects a
road map for the future:
“We believe that the
Medium Term Program, prepared under the leadership of our Vice President, Mr.
Cevdet Yılmaz, is also very important for making business plans and moving
forward with confidence. Thanks to him, as someone who always attaches
importance to consultation and common sense, he has always met with us,
including on this issue, and received our opinions and suggestions.
We are ready to run,
work and produce. Allah willing, we will overcome all difficulties and continue
on our way. We will continue to produce and labor to make our country stronger,
richer and more prosperous.”
- Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz
In his speech at the
opening of the Council, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said that the Investment
Environment Improvement Coordination Board (YOIKK), which includes
representatives of relevant ministries and the private sector, has prepared a
57-article action plan and plans to announce it tomorrow.
Stating that they see
all meetings where they take the pulse of the business world under the roof of
TOBB as an opportunity to strengthen the economic structure together with
stakeholders, Yılmaz said that they see TOBB as the kitchen of reforms
regarding the economy and trade in line with the perspective adopted by
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for 21 years.
Yılmaz stated that they
prepared and implemented their road maps, especially the Medium Term Program
(MTP) covering the 2024-2026 period and the 12th Development Plan
covering the 2024-2028 period, in consultation with the representatives of the
business world.
Explaining that they
are also shaping their structural reform agenda in line with the feedback and
expectations of the representatives of the business world, Yılmaz said that the
issues to be voiced by the sector representatives who undertake production,
employment, investment and exports in all corners of Türkiye are extremely
valuable and important for them.
Yılmaz stated that they
always support sector representatives and said, “We are determined to increase
our country's gains in the fields of economy and finance and to look to the
future with confidence with our vision of the Turkish Century. With a century
of experience, we will carry our country further together with the public and
private sectors.”
- “We are implementing policies that will enable sectors to
see the future more clearly”
Stating that the weak
course in global growth continued with the ongoing effects of the Covid-19
outbreak and the Russia-Ukraine war, Yılmaz said that geopolitical risks
increased the volatility of prices and risks.
Emphasizing that in the
World Bank's Global Economic Prospects Report published last month, the global
growth expectation for 2024 remained unchanged at 2.4 percent and for 2025 was
reduced by 0.3 percentage points to 2.7 percent, Yılmaz said, “In such a global
climate, we have been implementing policies that reduce uncertainty in our
economy since last year and that all sectors can see the way ahead more
clearly. We are working to fight inflation, ensure fiscal discipline, stabilize
growth, reduce the current account deficit and strengthen our reserves.”
Stating that many
economic data are expressed in terms of national income, Yılmaz said, “Now that
our national income has been revealed, we have revised some of our data
accordingly. According to our initial calculations, we have a national income
exceeding 1.1 trillion dollars, based on the latest figure. For the first time
in our history, we have exceeded the 1 trillion dollar level and we have also
exceeded the 1.1 trillion dollar level. Thus, we have reinforced our position
as the 17th largest economy in the world in nominal terms. We also
maintain our 11th position in purchasing power, of course. In
proportional terms, the current account deficit is a critical issue for us. In
the middle of last year, our current account deficit was up to 60 billion
dollars. At the end of the year, it declined to 45 billion dollars. We see that
the ratio of the current account deficit to national income fell by 4 percent.
This was exactly the forecast we made in the Medium Term Program. We see that
this prediction has come true.”
The Council continued
closed to the press after the opening speeches.