Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO CCI) 23^rd Executive Committee Meeting was hosted by TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu at the TOBB Twin Towers and was attended by Minister of Customs and Trade Bülent Tüfenkci, Development Minister Lütfi Elvan, ECO TSO and Federation of Pakistan Trade and Industry Chambers Zubair Tufail Iranian Trade, Industries, Mines and Agriculture Chamber President Gholamhossein Shafei and Deputy Secretary General of the ECO Kanan Nazarov.

Hisarcıklıoğlu, stating that the ECO region is the heart of Eurasia, said, “We are the bridge between the East and the West, both economically and socially, so the development of these 10 countries is crucial not only for the region but also for the global economy. We have been very happy with the economic development of the countries of the region in the recent period and Turkey has also realized important achievements. With all the difficulties in our region, in the last year we have increased private sector employment by 1.5 million people and we are not satisfied with these figures because we know that we can do much more as the region’s countries.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu emphasized that the codes of the global economy and politics have changed completely, “Almost all of the economic and political developments affecting the world are shaped around the ECO region. We have a terrific region that will determine the direction of the economy. There is only one way: Grace and prosperity in unity; anguish in dissent. We have to come together more and work together more.”

In his speech, Customs and Trade Minister Bülent Tüfenkci said, “You can invest in the Product Specialization Stock Exchange in Turkey, buy and sell products there, we want this commodity exchange to be regional. In Iran we can establish a licensed warehouse in Pakistan to ensure that the cereals and licensed warehouse products are sold on an international platform.” Indicating that the trade between the ECO member countries does not satisfy anybody, Tüfenkci said that the member states should act differently now.

Development Minister Lütfi Elvan urged completion of the necessary work to make the Economic Cooperation Organization Trade Agreement (ECOTA) functional as soon as possible. “It is imperative that the ECOTA enters into force immediately for both trade and investments.”

He noted that the ECO region has tremendous opportunities to become a key regional player on the international scene, stressing that this potential is rooted in ECO's geopolitical position, historical background, members' ties, shared values, vast natural resources and human capital.

Zubair Tufail, President of the Federation of Economic Cooperation Organization Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ECO CCI) and Pakistan Trade and Industry Chambers, stated that countries should benefit from each other's experiences in the development of ECO regional economy and said “Turkey has made remarkable progress especially in the last 15 years. we can achieve a similar development as member countries by examining how it accomplished this.”

ECO Deputy Secretary General Kanan Nazarov said that the ECO puts great importance on business cooperation with the belief that an effective private sector plays a key role in the economic development of the region and a represents huge gain for their countries.

Iranian Chamber of Commerce President Golam Hussein Shafi said that developing countries' trade unions would increase trade and open country economies to a competitive market.