Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that it was decided to hold these briefing seminars for the council members following the Chamber / Commodity Exchange elections held in 2013, and said that having received very positive feedback with a satisfaction rate of 4.8 out of 5, they decided to hold further seminars with council members.

Hisarcıklıoğlu said that they were going through a difficult period as the Turkish business world, and that they’ve met with the 365 Chamber/Commodity Exchange Presidents in 7 regional meetings, listening to the problems of the members. Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the demands and problems from the chambers and commodity exchanges were conveyed to all ministers, as well as to the President of the Republic of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Hisarcıklıoğlu said that they met with the Turkey Banks Union and held meetings in 30 provinces in order to solve the problems related to the banks, and that they had one-on-one meetings with approximately 9,000 people and that 97% of issues brought up were resolved.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stating that there are two important trends in the world, reported that the global population grows by twice that of Turkey’s population every year, and that 2 billion people are in the middle income class, “In 2020, this figure will be 3.2 billion, 5 billion in 2030. People in the world become urbanized, prosper and change spending habits as they prosper with higher demands for consumption, increasing as they leave rural areas. The consumption of this middle class is about 7 trillion USD. By 2020, this will triple, and it will reach 20 trillion USD. What does that show? This actually shows why you need the community which the chambers and exchanges represent. We need infrastructure to meet this demand, production needs, distribution needs. Merchants, industrialists and agricultural sector will be more important all over the world in the future.”

Explaining that the second important trend is the competition of cities Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “City economies are coming to prominence over countries, becoming brands. All over the world, cities are now at the forefront. The race is between cities. You are your city's opinion leaders. Today, the population of 600 large cities in the world is 1.5 billion. The economic volume is 30 trillion USD. Half the world economy is now in cities. The city is where the money is. In 10 years, the population of the cities will be 2 billion, with a total economic volume of 64 trillion USD. That's 60% of the world economy. There is only one solution for the further development and prosperity of the city, and it is the private sector. You will be the ones who will determine this path in the future.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu said that this institution is the most democratic institution in Turkey; that the power is at the base and that everyone is elected.

“The best of people are those who benefit others,” said the president of TOBB and went on, “You are in a position to benefit people. How great is it if you can provide employment and food to just one person. Know well the value of it.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that he believes that the problems will be overcome and that this will be achieved by not alienating each other. Hisarcıklıoğlu said that diversity is the richness of this world, that there will be different ideas in chambers/commodity exchanges, but that the problems will be solved through common mind.