Türkiye shows ‘absolutely impressive will to reform’ on path to stability, growth: Swiss official

ISTANBUL

Türkiye has an “absolutely impressive will to reform” and put itself on a firm path to stability and growth, the vice chair of Switzerland Global Enterprise, the official Swiss organization for export and investment promotion, told Anadolu.

Francois Gabella said his visit to Türkiye had been positive and the business environment in the country is developing rapidly, speaking on the sidelines of the 19th Türkiye–Switzerland Economic Forum recently held in collaboration with the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in Türkiye, the Swiss Embassy, and more associations.

In addition to Gabella, Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat and Guy Parmellin, vice president of the Swiss Federal Council, were present at the event.

“We saw, talking to the ministers, that there is an absolutely impressive will to reform in the country and to put it on stability, and also a path of growth — that is extremely promising,” said Gabella. “And that is exactly what justifies the strengthening of our ties together between Türkiye and Switzerland.”

“The unique position of Türkiye in this geopolitical landscape makes it very well positioned to penetrate many countries in the regions where Switzerland is not necessarily very well introduced,” he said, noting that Türkiye and Switzerland can work together in many sectors, such as energy, green technology, and infrastructure, where they can achieve more if they work together.

“I think there are many sectors, whether it's industrial or something else — basically Switzerland has strength in some domains,” he said. “If you take the pharmaceutical industry where we have quite a bit of knowledge, so whether it’s production or whether it's distributing our products, in Türkiye there are big potentials.”

“But also, when it comes to projects, Türkiye is extremely active, not only in the region, but also as far as Africa and different areas — there is a tremendous know-how in Türkiye for large projects and Switzerland is also active in this sector,” he added.

Turkish startups, plus energy and infrastructure projects

Gabella stated that he visited a technopark in Türkiye and was impressed by it, noting that collaborations in tech and science could play a key role in the future.

“What struck me also is the width of the spectrum of technologies you’re tackling from micro technologies to biotech to mechanics to space to many materials, and the number of projects, the number of startups, and the dedication from the government to develop and to help developing these companies,” he said.

Gabella noted that startups need capital and the financial ecosystem to demonstrate potential and convince customers.

“When people talk about startups, more often they talk about the startup themselves, the people having ideas normally coming out of schools for example, and then they need laboratories to perfection or to improve their idea,” he said. “What we seldom talk about is the ecosystem and the financial system to make sure that these companies will find seed capital to exist to show what they are able to do.”

He noted that the Swiss financial ecosystem not only invests within its borders but also in other countries, adding that Turkish startups could also benefit from these funds.

Gabella stated that, with the shift to green energy, the use of solar and wind energy is expected to rise worldwide, which could bring some challenges in production, grid, distribution, and storage.

In terms of major infrastructure projects, Gabella emphasized that Türkiye and Switzerland could work together to provide significant advantages, as Switzerland built dams and highways around the world and has strong expertise in the field.

He noted that such expertise is needed in construction engineering, machinery, hydraulics, and electricity, adding that Türkiye and Switzerland could gain a competitive edge if they worked together in major infrastructure projects.