Mahmut Asmalı has become the new president of MÜSİAD, the business organization with the most extensive domestic and international structure in Türkiye. Asmalı, who took over the post at the 26th Ordinary General Assembly held recently with the participation of President Erdoğan as well, explained his plans for the new term to Z Raporu. Asmalı said that they aim to carry the flag they have taken over further ahead and higher. Stating that Türkiye has a significant advantage with its current manufacturing potential and flexible production capacity, Asmalı noted that with this potential the country will decouple positively in the post-Covid-19 period as well, and that they have begun to see the first signs of this.

You were elected as the seventh president at the 26th Ordinary General Assembly of MÜSİAD, which was founded 31 years ago by business people united around the principles of virtue and morality. Congratulations. What kind of legacy do you think you have taken over?

As we leave our 31st year behind, our MÜSİAD has undertaken a very important task in the economic and social development of our Türkiye and on its way to becoming a global player. Within the framework of its founding philosophy, MÜSİAD has supported every effort that would contribute to Türkiye's development and raise the welfare level of its people. Through the projects and activities it has carried out with the labour of all its members and the research reports it has published, it has made great contributions to the administrations of our country in every period.

How would you describe the MÜSİAD vision that will be implemented during your term?

As a MÜSİAD member who joined in 2006 as a rank-and-file member, who has worked with 4 presidents and who has served on sector boards, on boards of directors and as vice chairman, we will, God willing, carry this flag — which we have taken over with the consensus of all our branches and management levels and with the approval of our General Assembly — further ahead and higher, all together with our members. MÜSİAD is a hearth, a school and a voluntary formation, and its door is open to everyone who wishes to serve our country and our people. MÜSİAD is a community of ideas, principles and action. MÜSİAD's priority is Türkiye, the Islamic world, the oppressed nations and the salvation of humanity. In line with these priorities, our enthusiasm, determination and resolve to carry the flag we have taken over further ahead are complete. We will draw our strength from our past and focus on today and the future. By combining the experience of the past with the innovations of today, with God's help we will carry MÜSİAD and Türkiye to new horizons.

You took over the presidency at a time when the whole world is fighting Covid-19 and when the transformation caused by the pandemic in the global economy is being experienced. What kind of period do you think the world economy is entering?

From the first day the pandemic began to spread on a global scale until today, a harsh wind of transformation has begun to blow in the world economy. Indeed, as the movement of goods and people came to a standstill with the pandemic, the flow of money and capital also slowed down considerably. The fact that economic activity went through one of the worst periods in history led all the countries of the world to offer large amounts of incentives, support and grants to the markets, brought about trillion-dollar rescue packages and gave rise to the dominance of expansionary monetary policy on a global scale. With the start of the normalization process and the acceleration of vaccination activities, however, this wind reversed and inflation emerged as the most important problem of the global economy. Moreover, global economic activity has not yet reached its pre-crisis levels. To this were added the increases in food and commodity prices and supply-demand problems. In the light of all these developments, we can say that a rather difficult period awaits the global economy in eliminating the effects of Covid-19. In this process, the actors of the global economy have to take new decisions so that the cash support released into the market through asset purchases and rescue packages does not cause further inflationary pressure, while on the other hand they have to prevent economic activity from slowing down. At the stage we are at now, it is unfortunately seen that uncertainties about how to get out of this dilemma are increasing with each passing day.

“Türkiye has a significant advantage with its current manufacturing potential”

How do you expect Türkiye to be affected by this transformation?

We all know that the short- and long-term consequences of the pandemic on the global economy will continue. As we have frequently stated, we believe that the negative short-term effects of Covid-19 can be turned into an opportunity for our country, particularly in the medium term. Because Türkiye has a significant advantage compared with the surrounding countries thanks to its current manufacturing potential, flexible production capacity, low-cost labour force and proximity to large markets. Current export data also support this forecast of ours. The fact that our total exports in the January-July period of 2021 rose by 34.9 percent compared with the same period of the previous year to reach USD 121.3 billion indicates that the Turkish market, using its post-crisis advantages, has decoupled positively from comparable countries. We believe that our country's “national industrial sector and domestic manufacturing capability”, whose importance in this critical position we have once again realized in this process, will continue to distinguish Türkiye positively from other countries in the coming period.

Will you as MÜSİAD carry out guiding work so that the Turkish business world can adapt to this process and come to the fore in global competition? How can the Turkish business world turn this process into an advantage?

The Covid-19 process has once again shown that it is not possible for any country, not only Türkiye, to produce all products at a self-sufficient capacity. In this context, the transformation of existing supply chains will play an important role in the recovery that will take place in the medium and long term after the crisis. Establishing a supply chain system that is as flexible and diversity-based as possible will increase our country's advantage in production and foreign trade in the coming period. Because with Covid-19 it has become much more difficult to predict constantly changing consumer demands in advance. Diversifying the supply chain, on the other hand, plays a key role in reducing risks, ensuring business continuity and managing operating costs. This is therefore at the top of the points we will focus on in the new period. In this way, we aim to ensure that the negative supply- and demand-side approaches that have formed against China in the global trade system shift to our country in a positive and lasting manner, and to increase the perception of quality towards Turkish products on a global scale. In this context, we attach importance to all the steps we will take being as long-term and as macro in perspective as possible.

“The Turkish economy has proven that it was built on solid foundations”

A period has been left behind in which elections, external economic attacks, threats, the pandemic, natural disasters and similar difficult processes were experienced. It is likely that similar processes will also be experienced during your term. MÜSİAD has sensitivities in this respect. What are your thoughts?

There is a saying in the economics literature: “Sooner or later all bubbles burst.” Drawing on this saying, we can state that all structures that are artificial, that do not rest on a truly solid foundation and that move only with a temporary wind behind them are doomed to disappear at the end of the day. With the fortitude it has shown in the face of the economic attacks and threats it has been exposed to, the Turkish economy has proven many times that it was built on solid foundations. It has successfully passed not only the tests of internal and external attacks, but also those produced by natural and extraordinary periods such as the pandemic and disasters. In this context, what falls to us as the representatives of the Turkish business world is to work with all our strength to make the solid foundations and the strong and stable structure of our economy sustainable, and to prevent a “bubble” from forming in all markets and sectors without exception. Indeed, we do not believe that any consumption not based on production is real. Let certain circles continue to console themselves with the tale that “Türkiye is growing only by consuming.” On this path we have set out on by saying “There can be no consumption without production”, we are aware that consumption is not an end but merely a means for more production. For this reason, as the business world, we need to increase the effort we show along the line of production, trade and investment. Thus we believe that we will succeed in emerging stronger, as in the past, from any possible new attacks and threats targeting the Turkish economy that may be observed in the coming period, or from any kind of extraordinary conditions.

The sentence you underlined in your General Assembly speech, "We wholeheartedly believe that Türkiye will make a great leap forward in the coming period", also points to a goal. In this sense, what is your approach to Türkiye's fundamental economic problems and what are your proposed solutions?

As is known, the Turkish economy grew by 7.2 percent in the first quarter of 2021, and in the second quarter it saw the level of 21.7 percent, the highest annualized third-quarter period growth rate in the history of our Republic. In this period Türkiye, ranking 2nd after the United Kingdom, which grew by 22.2 percent among the G20 countries, once again managed to decouple positively within the global economy. Moreover, in this period domestic demand, net foreign demand and investments all made a positive contribution to growth and pointed to an economy recording progress with all its components.

Of course, there is a long and difficult road ahead of us for the growth performance in question to acquire a sustainable quality. In this context, increasing the self-sufficiency policies of all our sectors in critical positions in the domestic and national sense and, in particular, determining a new strategy for foreign trade will be the right step. Among the issues we need to dwell on regarding foreign trade, the burden created on our economy by intermediate goods imports comes first.

The fact that intermediate goods imports, whose share in our total imports approaches almost %80 and which rose by 27.1 percent in the first 7 months of 2021 compared with the previous year to reach the level of USD 111.5 billion, have become very attractive threatens domestic production in the long run. Even though we possess the raw material as well as the means and potential to produce, every intermediate good we import harms our national economy. Moreover, intermediate goods imports, which also create upward pressure on consumer prices by increasing production costs, thus create an inflationary effect. In this scope, we believe that in the new period our domestic and national producers who wish to produce the intermediate goods currently being imported should be supported more.

“Our struggle against negative perception operations will continue”

Türkiye has recently become the target of a very heavy perception operation. One way of breaking down the negative perception operation carried out abroad against Türkiye is lobbying. In this sense, as MÜSİAD you hold great power with your extensive international structure. Do you have plans, through your international structure, to combat these negative perception operations carried out against Türkiye?

As MÜSİAD, with our global network we are in constant contact with the diplomatic missions and the public opinion in the countries where we are present. We consider it a national duty and an obligation to correct on the spot the negative perceptions towards our country. Of course, in a changing and developing world, while the power of information is being discovered with the effect of technology, the results produced by information pollution are also being observed. As business people who care about their nation and their country, we will both continue to do our work in the best way and continue to combat this perception by introducing our country in the best way and conveying the truth in the countries where we are present. In the new period, too, our work and our struggle will take shape in line with the national interests of our country and our nation, accompanied by the sharing of accurate information.


In your speech at the General Assembly you referred to the MÜSİAD Women Working Group. You stated that many projects would be implemented. Are there any projects planned at the moment; can we expect a more active period for the Women Working Group?

For a strong Türkiye, a strong economy is essential.
A Türkiye with a strong economy;
will be the greatest pioneer of the rebuilding of a world in which right and law, justice and equality, peace and trust, prosperity and happiness prevail.
Listening to our elders who said “Sow the seed; if it does not grow, let the soil be ashamed…”, we sowed seeds with Young MÜSİAD in order to raise the generations that will be the pioneers of this world in the future…
Over the last 20 years these seeds have sprouted; “they have put forth shoots, grown strong and have now begun to stand on their own trunks.” God willing, this term will be the term in which we gather the fruits.

In addition, with the strong support we will give to MÜSİAD Women, one of Türkiye's largest businesswomen's organizations with more than 200 businesswomen members across the country, we will, God willing, implement many successful projects concerning the present and the future of our business and family life. We will share our projects gradually in the days ahead.

MÜSİAD is not a standard NGO; it is an NGO that also follows developments in the global economic order with sensitivity.... At the global level, too, there are developments in which Islamic countries in particular are at the centre... Looking from this front, what kind of world appears?

As you have also stated, MÜSİAD is not a standard or ordinary Non-Governmental Organization; it is the name of a civil initiative and a cause born in İstanbul and spread to every corner of the world. Above all, we are the rank-and-file members of a capital platform that works for people and humanity and thereby shapes the future. Although the adversities experienced in the Islamic geography paint a distressing picture for all of us, we follow these processes with sensitivity and continue our initiatives both in the field and in the sphere of diplomacy for timely intervention. From now on we will continue this approach of ours with sensitivity.