Take Prophet’s wife as model for female entrepreneurship, TOBB president says

ISTANBUL

Rıfat Hisarcıklıoğlu. AA Photo

There should be more female entrepreneurs in Turkey, the chairman of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) has said, pointing to the Prophet Muhammad’s first wife, Khadijah, as a role model for women in business, Doğan news agency has reported.

“Everyone takes someone as a model. As Muslims, [we] are trying to adhere to the Prophet’s tradition. So what was the Prophet’s wife Khadijah doing? [She] was not only a trader, she was the biggest logistician of her era,” Rıfat Hisarcıklıoğlu said. “We say that [we] are taking the Prophet as a model, but we forget Khadijah at the same time. No way. If you imitate the Prophet, motivate your daughters for entrepreneurship.”

Over half of Turkey’s population is female, yet only 6 percent of Turkish women are entrepreneurs, Hisarcıklıoğlu said.