Turkey to build tax-free industrial zone in Palestine


Turkey is going to establish an organized industrial zone in the Palestinian city of Jenin in the West Bank, according to a memorandum of understanding co-signed on Wednesday. The memorandum was signed by Turkey's Science, Industry and Technology Minister Fikri Isik, and Palestine's Deputy Prime Minister and National Economy Minister Mohammed Mostafa."This will not only be an organized industrial zone, but a free zone as well, offering unique and massive advantages to all investors, whether they are Turkish, Palestinian or other," Ahmet Sekeroglu, Board Chairman of TOBB-BIS Inc., told Anadolu Agency. The zone is going to be constructed by TOBB-BIS Inc., an affiliate of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey, better known as TOBB. The goods produced in the zone will be able to be exported to world markets including Germany, France, Saudi Arabia and the U.S. without any duties or quotas, he said. "The businesses will be insured by the World Bank, too," he added.Turkish Industry Minister Isik said that the TOBB project will lead to co-operation between Turkey and Palestine toward building and operating further industrial zones across Palestine, as well as increasing corporate capacity. Another goal is to bring the legal framework and corporate capacity in Palestine to international standards, he added. The Jenin Organized Industry Zone is going to be built on an area of 920,000 square meters, only 30 kilometers from Israel's Haifa Port and the Jordan-Palestine border, according to TOBB. The project, which is expected to provide employment to 6,000 people, is also supported by the German government, and slated to be Turkey's 281st organized industrial zone. The scheduled completion date is 2015.