Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO) President İbrahim Çağlar said İTO's aim is to introduce 10 world brands in the construction sector by 2023 and is preparing a road map to find a solution to the long-time problems of the contraction sector in Turkey, which ranks second in the world after China. Reviewing several possible measures, from the development of technical consulting to the establishment of a specialized bank, İTO spent 10,000 hours on the report.
Çağlar discussed the report in a meeting on July 14. He said they wished to establish a sector-oriented specialized bank and had submitted the proposal to the Environment and Urbanization Ministry, stressing that first reactions were highly positive. Along with the specialized bank, Çağlar indicated that a solution would be provided to the lack of financial tools in the sector's international project and the firms would be made more competitive. He said: "By 2030, $57 trillion is expected to be invested in infrastructure around the world and, by 2020, $2.2 trillion of infrastructure investment is foreseen in Europe." Çağlar also said that the government should stand as a guarantor for the firms operating abroad and should provide more support to contractors dealing with assurance and financial issues.
Pointing out that they needed to increase cooperation by the suppliers manufacturing domestic products, Çağlar recommended that a clustering should be made within the scope of the ministry for a sectoral collaboration in international projects. He said, "Taxes can be given to the firms collaborating abroad, even donations as well as Social Security Institution exemptions."
Çağlar also suggested that the Housing Development Administration of Turkey (TOKİ) could develop projects in countries that need social housing with the help of contractors working in the private sector. He stressed that a fund should be established for financing projects in the target markets, while standards should be applied to the firms that could work as international technical consultants. There were a few noteworthy suggestions at the İTO meeting on July 14. According to sector representatives, a technical consultancy and building audit insurance system should be established for international projects, and infrastructure should be prepared to act as a source for the secondary markets and the sector for residential secured loans used with insurance policies. Sector representatives also stressed that an ethics committee and a high committee should be established to monitor any unjust rivalry that may occur in the sector. They also suggested exemption from taxes and the detection of uncompetitive target countries.
