Speaking to the Anatolia news agency in Adana, Tanrıöven noted that the problems that SMEs face have increased with the recent global financial crisis which caused demand to decrease. “Alternative ways, models and mechanisms in a bid to exit from the crisis” should be developed, he said, adding: “Apart from supporting SMEs in domestic markets, we also extend support to these enterprises in foreign markets, like Europe, too. In this regard we have joined the European Enterprise Network, which was formed by 44 countries across Europe and the world.”
The number of companies in the database of KOSGEB reached 180,000 following an amendment made in the law to enable SMEs operating in service and commerce sectors to also benefit from the packages, he noted. “The number of SMEs to apply for support has far exceeded the targeted figures,” he said. The package is intended to provide loans to 100,000 SMEs, with funds totaling TL 2.5 billion. SMEs are the stimulating power of European economies and account for some 80 percent of recently created employment, Tanrıöven stated, explaining that their aim is to provide SMEs in Turkey with the necessary competitive power in global markets. He noted that the maximum loan provided to business owners would be TL 25,000 and that a higher limit of TL 30,000 would be in place for female business owners.
