Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu said in his speech, during this difficult period, the Chambers and Exchanges have a greater duty and responsibility, emphasizing that, “We, by taking on the role of a bridge between the business world and the government, convey the problems in the field, as quickly as fast as they are passed on to us. As TOBB, we have been in constant consultation with our Chambers and Exchanges in 81 Provinces. We worked with my board member, Mr. Selçuk Öztürk, and Mr. Hüseyin Çevik, chairman of the TB Council, who I worked with at TOBB. Every day, we have gathered of your issues, our members. Then we talked to the Ministers one-on-one and made attempts to resolve them.”

In March, when the outbreak began, Hisarcıklıoğlu noted that they presented a 70-point set of proposals to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Tax and SSI payments in various sectors have been postponed. The scope of the short work allowance has been expanded, making work faster. Various loan packages for companies have been implemented. Finally, the Breath Credits with Denizbank began. 7.5 percent interest, no payments in 2020, payments start in 2021. Then we continued to communicate our problems and suggestions in consultation with you. Because it's a dynamic process, every day a new issue, a new problem arises. Therefore, we are in contact with our members without any interruptions and continue to collect difficulties and suggestions.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that all the chamber/commodity exchange presidents are working diligently, “Our members are keeping the pulse, interpreting them, preparing suggestions and transferring them to us. Today, we will convey every topic you will convey to the relevant ministers. Thus, we will solve some of the problems of our members, our community, and relieve them.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu said that since the beginning of the week, restrictions have begun to be lifted, but the epidemic is not over yet.