Accompanied by a group of 160 Turkish businesspeople, Çağlayan embarked on a two-day visit to North Africa on Monday, his first destination being Tunisia. Having discussed ongoing trade developments and the course of future relations with Tunisian officials, Çağlayan announced at the Turkey-Tunisia Business Forum in Tunis on Monday that Turkish Eximbank would extend $500 million in loans to entrepreneurs in Tunisia. He was accompanied by Tunisian Minister of Trade and Industry Mohamed Lamine Chakhari. Çağlayan said the loan is designed to support reconstruction work in the country. “Companies from Tunisia will have the opportunity to receive loans for a repayment term of up to 10 years for their purchase of machinery from Turkey,” he noted. Çağlayan hinted that Eximbank would increase the size of the loan if there is demand.
Çağlayan arrived in Tripoli late on Monday where he was met by his Libyan counterpart, Ahmed Kouchi. Participating in the Turkey-Libya Business Forum in the capital city on Tuesday, Çağlayan said Libya would be offered $250 million in loans from Eximbank to help speed up their reconstruction efforts.
Underlining that Turkish contractors have gained significant experience with hundreds of projects around the world in the past two decades, Çağlayan said Libya and Tunisia would do well to benefit from this experience. “The African market is one of the markets in which Turkish construction firms are most active,” he explained. Turkish construction firms have realized 6,500 construction projects in 93 countries since the foundation of the modern republic in 1923, and the total volume of these projects has reached $207 billion. The minister suggested that the Housing Development Administration of Turkey (TOKİ) could also share its experience with the two countries to this end.
Kouchi said they attached great importance to private investment and to protecting the rights of foreign companies, adding, "We need the experience of foreign entrepreneurs in infrastructure and superstructure projects in Libya."
Turkish construction companies have projects in Libya totaling $23 billion, $15 billion of which are still under way, with some projects suspended following last year's unrest in the country. Observers expect a recovery now that problems have started to ease.
