Sabah – “Türkiye’s incredible economic success achieved through prudent fiscal policies and resolutely implemented structural reforms in the last 10 years has turned the country into a safe haven for foreign investors..”, Türkiye’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on his visit to Kyrgyzstan. Visiting Kyrgyzstan as the first stop in a larger tour of Central Asian republics, Erdogan held meetings with the Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev and Prime Minister Jantoro Satybaldiev in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek and attended the second meeting of the Türkiye-Kyrgyzstan High Level Strategic Cooperation Council.
Describing Türkiye’s success in attracting foreign investors in his speech at the council meeting, the Turkish Prime Minister praised the entrepreneurial talents of Turkish businesspeople; ‘Turkish businesspeople are present in every corner of the world establishing trade ties. There is no reason for them not to do business in Central Asia and Kyrgyzstan.’ ‘Having a liberal investment climate to support the capital inflow is extremely important in this regard.’, Erdogan advised the Kyrgyz audience.
Foreign investments into Türkiye have reached record levels during the last 10 years of Justice and Development Party (AK Party) rule, Erdogan said, averaging at about USD 10 billion per year, making Türkiye one of the of countries with the highest rate of increase in foreign direct investments (FDI). Türkiye had attracted approximately USD 1 billion FDI per year between 1992 and 2003.
“Today Türkiye is considered a safe haven by foreign investors.”, Erdogan remarked, adding that creating confidence and stability was key to attracting foreign investors which, in turn, brings consumption, investments and employment.
Setting a target for Türkiye and Kyrgyzstan trade volume, Erdogan said that a billion dollars of trade between the two countries could easily be reached. “The current trade volume level of USD 300 million is clearly not enough. The political will to increase this amount to USD 1 billion exists on both sides.”, he noted.