Firms other than Tofaş may join local car race
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
Other carmakers are currently developing plans to produce a “made in Turkey” automobile, Ergün said yesterday at a press conference following an awards ceremony for young entrepreneurs at Istanbul Trade University, but did not name names.
In reference to recent news about a potential Fiat and Tofaş partnership, he said, “We will be very pleased if Fiat and Tofaş form a joint venture, design the model in Turkey, produce the important components locally and market the car both here and abroad.”
There might also be more than one model and brand of domestic car within a few years, he said.
Earlier in his speech at the awards ceremony, Ergün highlighted the government’s efforts to support young entrepreneurs in an effort to foster what he referred to as a homespun Steve Jobs. The only factor setting the U.S. apart from Turkey is the former’s investment in human capital, Ergün said, stressing that Turkey needed such investment.
“We have a young dynamic population, but we need to plan and grasp opportunities,” he said.
As part of its investment in human capital, the Turkish government is forming the Entrepreneurs Council to develop new strategies to support entrepreneurship, remove obstacles to innovation and find sources of funding. Since 2009, the government has set up a fund to support 100 young local entrepreneurs per year. Winners have received 100,000 Turkish Liras to go toward their budding business ventures.
“From 2012 onwards, we will up our budget to $50 million and choose 500 entrepreneurs.