Entrepreneurship summit ends with great expectations

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was one of the many participants who spoke optimistically at the end of the summit Tuesday. “With this summit, we carry forward a conversation about the role that entrepreneurs can and must play in a healthy, thriving, prosperous, stable society, and how each of us, no matter where we live or who we are, can help to spread the principles and the benefits of entrepreneurship to people everywhere,” she said during her closing remarks at the summit.

In his speech in Cairo last June, President Barack Obama announced that the US would host a summit on entrepreneurship to identify how the world can deepen ties between business leaders, foundations and social entrepreneurs in the United States and Muslim-majority countries. “And you can count on the United States to be your partner, because this summit reflects the new approach to foreign policy that President Obama described last year [in] Cairo, one that we have been putting into practice through partnerships based on shared values, mutual respect and mutual responsibility,” Clinton said, adding that such partnerships are not only with governments but with citizens and entrepreneurs. “So far, we have developed initiatives that will build on the work of this summit and support entrepreneurs worldwide in the months and years ahead.” One of these initiatives that Clinton mentions is “Partners for a New Beginning” which will be chaired by former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and vice-chaired by Walter Isaacson, the president of the Aspen Institute, and Muhtar Kent, the chairman and CEO of the Coca-Cola Company.

In addition to this, Clinton also announced that the Global Entrepreneurship Program’s first pilot program would shortly be organized in Egypt.

Turkey was represented by a delegation of six entrepreneurs at the summit. In addition, Cem Özdemir, the co-chair of the German Green Party, Turkish-German Trade Union President Nihat Sorgeç, Atilla Aytekin, the CEO of a software firm who represented the Netherlands, and Dilek Ayhan, a member of the Norwegian delegation, were other ethnic Turkish participants at the summit.

Aytekin said they are glad to see that the US -- which currently has a negative image in most Muslim countries -- is welcoming entrepreneurs from Muslim nations with open arms. “This is something we have not seen in the past 10 years. Today the term ‘Muslim world’ refers to 80 percent of the world’s fast-developing markets. Turkey plays an important role in this regard; we have the potential to lead economic development in Muslim countries, and that is why Turkey is focusing more on research and development investments, encouraging its entrepreneurs to better integrate with global markets than it ever did,” he explained.

Technopolis Group Turkey Director Şirin Elçi said Turkey is shouldering a big responsibility by offering to host the next entrepreneurship summit. “We should start working to make sure that the summit will be hosted in the best way possible, starting now.”

Özdemir said they believe the summit marks the beginning of a new chapter in relations between the US and Muslim nations. “You would not even have imagined such an event during the preceding US president’s term in office. Now things are changing for the better,” he noted. Pozitron General Manager Fatih İşbecer said they expect the summit would continue to be held in different countries in the years to come, adding that the US administration has planned it well. “Increasing trade ties between countries will help minimize the risk of possible clashes or wars. Obama has mentioned $2 billion in incentives would be allocated to support investments in developing Muslim countries,” he asserted. Nevzat Aydın, the general manager of Yemeksepeti.com, said: “Obama lives up to his end of bargain with this summit. He had earlier promised during his election campaign that he would work to improve the US’s image in the Muslim world … so this is a part of such commitment.”