Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

With the project, TOBB and Facebook are aiming to inspire women who want to establish their own business all around Turkey and to provide women entrepreneurs with the necessary knowledge, skills, connections and technology to take their business a step further.

TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the world is experiencing a new industrial revolution and that in the first industrial revolution, men were more advantageous than women in production in the 18^th century.

Hisarcıklıoğlu, pointing out factory workers of the time were mostly men because of their muscle strength advantage, said:

“The organization of production in the first industrial revolution had put women in a disadvantageous position in the economy, but in the new industrial revolution, things are changing and reason and digital technology have begun to take the its place of the muscle power which is a big and very important opportunity for Turkey. The second is that women who cannot get enough in economic life can stand out as entrepreneurs or professionals because of digital technologies.

This is the project we have undertaken with Facebook. Today entrepreneurship is divided into two: On the one hand, those who will be restricted by traditional methods, on the other hand those who will be able to use digital platforms effectively and market their products and services to the world. We are starting this project because we want the entrepreneurs in Turkey to be in the second group. At the end of the project, we want to see 5,000 women who have the ability to grow their business through Facebook and Instagram. As TOBB, we will continue to undertake affirmative towards female entrepreneurs.”

- “When women become stronger, the economy becomes stronger”

Nicola Mendelsohn, Vice President of Facebook Europe, Middle East and Africa Region, congratulating Turkey's ever-growing entrepreneurial ecosystem, reported that economy grows robust alongside women's empowerment.

Nicola Mendelsohn stated that they celebrate women who have built their own businesses and successfully run their businesses and one day to are trying to provide women who one day want to form their own enterprises with the resources they may need. “There are 44 million visitors to Facebook and 31 million visitors to Instagram from Turkey monthly. This rich community offers SMEs in Turkey an opportunity to directly reach their current and potential customers. We aim to provide women entrepreneurs in Turkey with the opportunity to benefit from these opportunities and to inspire them to grow their dreams with the #SheMeansBusiness project.”

Facebook Turkey Country Director Derya Matraş said, “We believe that women's success is of great importance in terms of strengthening social and economic growth. There is a great potential in Turkey for women entrepreneurs who want to set up their own business. That is why we are launching #SheMeansBusiness project to inspire more women entrepreneurs in Turkey and I am very happy to be part of this meaningful project.”