Turkey has come a long way over the last twenty years, and much of the progress stems from Turkey’s 2023 Vision Plan. Introduced by the governing AK Party, headed by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the action plan consists of specific goals for all aspects of running the country.
2023 is the deadline for achieving these goals, and it coincides with the 100-year anniversary of the Turkish Republic. Although the strategy breaks down into areas of society and business, all goals contribute towards one primary target and that is to be a top ten performing economy of the world.
By achieving this, Turkey would have transitioned from one of the worst economies to a high-income earner. Key economic targets for Turkey’s 2023 Vision Plan are…
- Achieve single digit interest and inflation rates
- Achieve a per capita income of 25,000 USD
- Annually export 500 billion USD worth of goods
- Achieve 5% unemployment rate
- Annually train 400,000 unemployed citizens with skills needed for the workforce
- Have a working population of 30,000,000
Breaking Down Turkey’s 2023 Vision Plan
Energy
Without a doubt, a key performing sector of an economy is energy of which Turkey has devoted much time and energy to. After a privatisation plan, power distribution is now in the private sector, and with a vested interest in new technology, Turkey offers investors, numerous incentives to invest in the energy sector. A breakdown of targets for the 2023 vision energy plan reveals that Turkey wants to…
- Increase renewable energy to 30%
- Maximise hydropower use
- Generate 20,000 MV of wind power
- Generate 1,000 MV of geothermal energy
- Generate 5,000 MV of solar energy
- Commission three nuclear power plants
- Establish an energy stock exchange
Transportation
As well as making credit more freely available so people can buy new vehicles, many projects have totally changed the Turkish transportation network, making it easier and quicker to get around and for businesses to transport their goods. Of course, the biggest talked about project is the New Istanbul Third airport, but other projects include:
- 25,000 kilometres of railway lines
- 35,500 kilometres of dual carriageways
- 7,500 kilometres of motorway
- Dardanelles Bridge. (Also called Canakkale 1915 bridge, it will be the longest suspension bridge in the world)
- The Three Level Istanbul Tunnel
- 10,000 km of high speed railways tracks
Tourism
Tourism is one of Turkey’s biggest success stories and despite suffering setbacks in 2015 and 2016, is forging ahead with a successful season predicted for 2018. Credit for the success lies with branded promotions of every niche including domestic, golf, health, plateau, ski, business and much more. Targets to achieve by 2023 include…
- Annually host 50 million tourists
- Annually generate 50 billion USD in revenue
- Increase bed capacity by 500,000 to 1.5 million
- Build 40 new marinas
Agriculture
The agriculture and food industry of Turkey accounts for 6% of the GDP and 20% of the working population. It’s currently the world’s seventh largest agricultural producer but Turkey wants to be in the top five and also…
- Export 40 billion USD of agriculture
- Be number one in EU fisheries
Finance
Some it is crazy, others say it can be done but one ambitious goal for the finance sector of Turkey is to make Istanbul, a global centre of finance, and match the reputation and status of America’s Wall Street. Other targets include…
- Have 1000 Turkish companies trading on the Istanbul Stock Exchange
- Increase exporters from 50,000 to 100,000
- Have 10 Turkish brands trading internationally
- Diversification of markets and products
- Support machinery, iron, steel, automotive, chemicals, electronics and textile industries
Other Key Targets
- Increase mining exports by 10 billion
- Achieve 100 percent literacy rate for under 50s
- Establish 200 universities
- Become an EU member
- Play a specific role in resolving global conflicts
Is Turkey’s 2023 Vision Plan achievable?
Giving current economic circumstances in Turkey, experts predict that they are unlikely to achieve their goal to be one of the top ten performing economies. The IMF forecasts say the country will instead rank at number 17.
However, they are still forging ahead with various targets outlined in their medium-term programs. The current one running from 2018 to 2020 explicitly targets inflation, unemployment as well as easing bureaucracy procedures for foreign investors in Turkey.
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