Ömer Karadeniz, President of PLASFED, stated that in order for the Turkish economy to achieve its sustainable growth targets, industrial-focused policies must be implemented decisively, saying, “Industry-Focused Policies are the key to Turkey’s sustainable growth.” He pointed out that rising energy costs have negatively impacted the Turkish industry, particularly the plastics sector, emphasizing the importance of enhancing the investment environment and digital transformation in the industry.
Turkey’s economy has significant growth potential thanks to its strategic geographic location, robust production infrastructure, and large, dynamic population. The industrial sector plays a crucial role in realizing this potential. Ömer Karadeniz, President of the Plastics Manufacturers Federation (PLASFED), highlighted that the export capacity, high value-added production, and job creation ability of the industrial sector are the cornerstones of Turkey’s economic development.
Karadeniz stated that the industry is a decisive force in Turkey’s economic stability, not only in terms of production but also regarding export revenues, technology transfer, and employment, adding, “Despite this strong structure, our sector has been struggling with serious macroeconomic problems recently.”
“Energy costs and fluctuations are challenging the industry”
The chairman of the umbrella organization PLASFED indicated that particularly high inflation, fluctuations in exchange rates, sharp increases in energy costs, and disruptions in the global supply chain have adversely affected industrial production and competitiveness in foreign markets. Karadeniz expressed that the plastics industry has been directly impacted by these issues, stating, “Energy costs have become the most significant cost item for our sector in the last five years. This situation undermines both our production capacity and our export strength.”
According to Karadeniz, in order to overcome these challenges and enable the industrial sector to regain momentum, energy costs need to be reorganized in favor of the industry, the transition to high value-added production must be encouraged, digital transformation and technological innovations in the industry should be supported, and the investment environment must be made reliable and predictable.
“Industry is the cornerstone of the economy and social welfare”
Emphasizing that for Turkey to achieve sustainable growth targets, industrial-focused policies must be implemented decisively, Karadeniz underscored that industry-based development is essential not only for economic reasons but also for social welfare.
Karadeniz stated that PLASFED will continue to be the voice of the plastics industry and work in collaboration with all stakeholders to address the problems faced by the sector.
“SMEs must have easier access to finance”
Addressing the difficulties faced by industrialists in accessing finance, Karadeniz noted that it is crucial for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to have access to affordable and long-term financing sources. He emphasized that industrial organizations wishing to modernize their production processes and enhance their global competitiveness should be more effectively linked to financial support mechanisms, saying, “Once the access to finance issue is resolved, our industry’s innovative capacity will further increase, which will directly reflect on the growth rate of the Turkish economy.”
Translated by Artificial Intelligence
