Locals hail govt incentives for investing in SE Turkey

ANKARA (AA) - Businesspeople from southeastern Turkey are lauding a package of economic subsidies designed to spur investments and exports recently announced by the government.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has urged the business world to invest in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern regions, offering government incentives such as purchase guarantees, fixed investment costs, and coverage of factory construction expenditures.

Businesspeople from the region welcomed Yıldırım's call, saying the economic subsidy package will do much to help end the violence in the region, as new investments are critical for peace and stability.

They said they hoped for the revival of investments, now at a standstill due to the terrorist attacks, with the help of the subsidies.

"I believe that the new economic subsidy package will contribute substantially to ending violence in the provinces of the region and provide notable social and economic benefits," said Aydin Altac, head of the Diyarbakir branch of the Anatolian Businessmen’s Association (ASKON).

"It will absolutely advance the regional economy and development through boosting employment and production as well."

Altac stressed that the package will strengthen the regional economy in terms of state support for women and young people, subsidies for factories’ infrastructure and superstructure, and ensuring purchase guarantees for products.

"Terrorism is an obstacle to the government's investment projects, and disrupts the state’s social and economic plans for the region," said Altac, adding that terrorism would stand no chance in economically enhanced regions with low unemployment.

On the region’s unemployment problem, he blamed it on terrorism, saying, "Terrorism and violence are preventing people from investing in the region. The terrorists burn engineering vehicles, block the roads, harass our people and companies investing here, engage in racketeering, and pressure locals."

- We will give you whatever you want

Ramazan Azboy, the chair of HAKSIAD, another Diyarbakir business group, echoed Altac's praise for the economic package, and the need to stop terrorism for the sake of economic development.

"The sections about all kinds of support to provide positive discrimination for investors and purchase guarantees for products pleased us. We will all witness the benefits of this for the region. We hope it will be an auspicious occasion for Diyarbakir and southeastern Turkey," he said.

"The only thing that an investor has to do is manage the facilities," said Bahattin Celik, director of the Siirt Organized Industrial Park.

"The new economic package tells investors, 'Come here to do business. We will give you whatever you want. We could even be partners’," added Celik.

"We are impatiently waiting for investors from outside the region," said Nedim Kuzu, deputy chair of the Siirt Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

"We still have room at the Siirt Organized Industrial Park for investors. Prime Minister [Binali] Yildirim's words about the upcoming subsidies excited the country's entire business sector," said Kuzu.

"Women, children, teachers, workers, businesspeople, officials – we all have to do whatever the country needs to develop," he added.

"We are ready to serve businesspeople planning to invest in the Batman province," said Arif Gunes, head of the Batman Chamber of Commerce.

Gunes argued that the region’s well-being depends on investments, saying "I urge the people of Batman and businesspeople to invest in Batman, as the only way to boost the region’s prosperity is through investments.”

- A comprehensive package

On Aug. 10, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim gave a speech about the new economic subsidy package to boost Turkey’s economy.

"If entrepreneurs invest in southeastern Turkey, the state will partner with them," Yildirim told Turkish exporters.

The new package includes a wide range of subsidies such as freight support to cut exporters’ transportation costs, support for enterprises seeking technological upgrades, and marketing assistance for products that are competitive and needed by the country.

The incentives would take the form of tax relief and refunds of both corporate and value-added taxes, customs exemptions, free land for investors, grants to start new businesses, support for social security contributions, discounted energy prices for producers, assistance for employing qualified workers, and capital contributions.

Reported by Omer Yasin Ergin, Zekeriya Gunes, and Muhyeddin Beyca; with contributions and writing by Muhammed Ali Gurtas.