SMEs continue to be driving force behind Turkish exports

Speaking at the 6th Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) Summit in Ankara on Friday, Büyükekşi said encouraging more companies to engage in exports will strengthen Turkey’s hand in the foreign market. He recalled that the number of Turkish exporter businesses had increased from 25,000 in 2001 to 48,511 in 2009, adding that growth potential should be used to further improve Turkish exports.

Büyükekşi discussed Turkey’s goal of increasing its exports to $500 billion in 2023, the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Turkish Republic. One of the key factors that will carry Turkey one step closer to realizing this target, he said, was increasing the number of export companies. The TİM head said SMEs have a key role in this regard. Turkish SMEs will help the country’s exports leap forward in the years to come.

Underlining that SMEs are the backbone of the Turkish economy, he said 98 percent of the 48,551 exporter firms operating in 2009 were SMEs. “This figure is enough to prove the importance of SMEs for Turkey’s economy,” he said, acknowledging that Turkish SMEs faced serious difficulty due to the global financial crisis last year.

Calling on more SMEs to enter export markets, he said this was important in fostering growth of both the companies and the country’s economy. “The more our companies expand their existence in global markets, the more Turkish economy will benefit from this.”

Mehmet Büyükekşi

As regards exporters’ targets for the months to come, the TİM head said they would concentrate on marketing products with relatively higher added value and support exporter firms to increase investments in research and development (R&D) and innovation. Noting that Turkey has managed to diversify its export markets to a great extent particularly during the past year, he said they would exert extra efforts to enter new markets.

Büyükekşi stated that the Turkish economy is currently going through a transformation, and in the past few years, the country has opened up to outside markets more than it did in the past half century. “Our exporters are playing an important role in the Turkish economy’s integration with global markets. Today, more sectors from different provinces in Anatolia are showing themselves in the global arena than in the past. We should use this trend as a driving force behind our growing exports,” he opined.

Another critical issue, Büyükekşi highlighted, is that Turkish industry needs to utilize more of the latest technological developments than it currently does. “We need to set our sights on carrying out a ‘technological revolution’ in our industry. The more we are integrated with technology, the faster our economy will flourish.” Underlining that the government also backs this project, Büyükekşi said all parties involved should shoulder their responsibilities. “We want all public and private institutions to be at the heart of this project instead of providing support from outside,” he emphasized.