Turkey invites Arab world to invest

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

Turkey hosted the Ninth Turkish-Arab Economic Forum in Istanbul on May 28, an event which gathered foreign ministers, prominent public and private sector decision-makers, visionaries and strategists from Turkey and Arab countries for a wide range of agenda-setting discussions.

Starting with a discussion on the economic challenges facing the Arab world in the aftershocks of the uprisings often called the “Arab Spring,” the forum sought the stability and clarity necessary to move forward and explore investment opportunities in Turkey, particularly in the banking and real estate sectors.

Turkish Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said the forum is an excellent networking platform for those interested in investing in Turkey.

Şimşek said Turkey serves as an efficient and cost-effective bridge to major markets across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), as well as serving as a natural bridge for East-West and North-South trade.

Şimşek said the Arab world is waking up and democracy, wealth and stability will spread and added, “The biggest problem in the MENA region is unemployment, but I think they will overcome it with economic reforms, similar to Turkey.”

Inviting Arabic countries to invest in Turkey, Şimşek said, “United we stand, divided we fall.”
Ummaya Toukan, Jordan’s minister of finance, said the forum played a crucial role in enhancing Turkish-Arab relations, which have been lagging for more than half a century.

“Nobody can ignore that Turkey is a big international market. The economic relationships between Turkey and the Arab world are improving,” Toukan said. “The Arab world needs Turkey as a financial hub to Europe and other parts of the world, and can bring a lot of customers for investment.”