A “Meeting with British Business People” program was organized at the Head Office between the Independent Industrialists and Businessmen Association (MÜSİAD) and the British businessmen community UK 101 Club

A “Meeting with British Business People” program was organized at the Head Office between MÜSİAD and the British businessmen community UK 101 Club.

President Abdurrahman Kaan, UK 101 Club Founder Zakir Khan, members of the MÜSİAD Board of Directors and a large number of Turkish and British business people attended the program.

Delivering the opening speech of the event, President Kaan pointed out that the business world is not merely a domain ruled by money and material returns. Noting that through their understanding of trade they come into contact with people of different religions, languages and races, Kaan said: “Today, building this network of relations in global trade is far easier than it used to be. With the communication and transport opportunities developing alongside technology, there is no longer any such thing as a distant place in the world. Therefore, we must make better use of these opportunities and increase these valuable exchanges of ideas by coming together more often. In this way, beyond getting to know one another better, we will also achieve mutually beneficial growth by correctly analyzing the needs and the potentials of our countries.”

Emphasizing that the purpose of the meeting was to lay the ground for Muslim business people and Turkish business people to act together, Kaan pointed out that in this context they wanted not only to exchange ideas but also to share knowledge and experience.

A Serious Market Loss Is at Stake for Türkiye

Touching on the Brexit process in his speech, Kaan said: ” One of the leading issues that has long been on the agenda of the United Kingdom and, of course, of us as business people, is the Brexit process.The consequences that Brexit, postponed until 31 October 2019, will bring with it are of great importance for Türkiye as much as for the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe. In addition to the United Kingdom being the second country to which Türkiye exports the most, the coming period will directly affect the relations between the two countries because of its strong position in European politics. Should the United Kingdom leave the European Union without an agreement, a serious market loss will be at stake for Türkiye; the foreign trade of the United Kingdom will also be adversely affected by this situation. In order for the trade volume between the two countries to be preserved and increased, it is essential that Brexit be legally concluded as soon as possible and that a free trade agreement (FTA) be signed between the two countries.”

Following the opening speeches, an MoU agreement was signed between the two institutions with the participation of Head of International Organization İbrahim Uyar in order to strengthen mutual cooperation.

In the later hours of the meeting, GABORAS General Manager İshak Kurtuluş Altun made a presentation on the GABORAS project, MÜSİAD Investment and Transformation in Industry High Board Chairman Burhan Özdemir on “Investment Potential in Türkiye”, and Letven Ventures Business Development Director and Managing Partner Taylan Gürbüz on “Agriculture, Food and Technology Funds”.

The program came to an end following the B2B meetings held with the participation of Turkish and foreign business people.