Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu gave an entrepreneurship-themed presentation at the meeting held at İzmir Hilton Hotel. Focusing on opportunities in Turkey and the world economy, Hisarcıklıoğlu focused on the necessity of encouraging young people to become entrepreneurs.

Stating that EGİAD, under the leadership of President Mustafa Aslan, carried out very important activities Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Especially your EGİAD Think Tank project is remarkable. There is an example of this in all the major institutions in the world, and we, as TOBB, implemented TEPAV 15 years ago. Thus, we increased both our corporate capacity and our ability to produce projects.”

Congratulating EGİAD for adopting the vision of putting İzmir among the top 20 entrepreneurial cities in the world, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Today, cities, not just countries, become brands and stand out in competition. Hopefully, thanks to you, the charm of İzmir will increase and its star will shine in the world. On the other hand, I would like you to be active in our chambers and exchanges. We are working together with President İzmir Chamber of Commerce Mahmut Özgener, in his capacity as Chairman of the EGİAD Advisory Board, as well as the on the board of directors of TOBB. You can also get advice and support from him on these issues.”

- The number of entrepreneurs must increase

While the proportion of entrepreneurs in Japan is 5% of the population, this rate in Turkey is 2%, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, there is still a long way to go in this area. Stating that the employment problem will only be solved by entrepreneurship, TOBB President reported that the number of female entrepreneurs in 15 years increased from 5% to 9%, stressing that this is not enough and must be increased even more.

Hisarcıklıoğlu mentioned the work they do as TOBB for the encouragement of entrepreneurship, “The most beneficent of men is who is beneficent unto others. If you contribute to the upbringing of an entrepreneur, there's nothing better than you. If you can give a person a job and food to his family, how beautiful.”