UIP-12th Bosphorus Summit

Panel: Change and Transformation Process of Turkish Apparel Industry

Opening Speech: Mustafa Gültepe- Chairman of the Istanbul Ready-to-Wear Clothing and Apparel Exporters' Association (İHKİB)

Moderator:  Halil AGAH-  Sevda Aydın Foundation Advisor to the Chairman of the Board of Directors

Panelists

1. Mehmet Dolgan-  ICI Deputy Secretary General

2. Hayrettin Gümüşkaya- Board Member of the Istanbul Ready-to-Wear Clothing and Apparel Exporters' Association (İHKİB)

For Turkey, ready-to-wear clothing is very important especially in terms of its export volume to the EU. Within the scope of the Green Deal, the sector needs both structural and social transformations and changes.  In this context, it is important to determine what to do for digitalization and technological transformation of large enterprises engaged in exporting  as well as  such transformation of small and medium enterprises and workshops.

Expectations of small and medium-sized enterprises and their solutions to these solutions were also discussed for  the first time in this panel.  It was agreed that the solution proposals that were covered in the  agenda would be put into practice within the scope of a project to be prepared with the  participation of all relevant stakeholders. In this context, discussions were held on issues such initiating an inventory study for production-based investments related to existing infrastructures on the basis of provinces, planning production areas with co-production that will respond to larger-scale demands, developing special incentive programs for establishing related sub-sectors (e.g.  label makers, button maker, printing, embroidery, washing, spare parts and technical maintenance, piece dyeing,  etc.),  starting vocational training activities, constructing treatment and waste collection and processing centers that require recycling and developing common uses of production structures,  and focusing on renewable energy sources and financing alternatives.