Is celebrating 'Made in Turkey' Week outdated or just nostalgia?

Officially known as the “Thrift, Investment and Turkish GoodsWeek,” which is celebrated in all schools across Turkey between December 12-18, is “Made in Turkey Week” outdated or just nostalgia?

Before discussing this question First, let us look at the situation of our country,which was once known as an agricultural country alongside itsindustrialproducts.Letus examine the state of our country.

Agricultural Engineers Chamber and Turkish Agriculturalists Association, along with organizations related to agriculture, as well as throughout the countryWe are facing a realitythat everyoneknows.

Wheat and rice from Russia,wheat from Ukraine,beans, apricots,and dried garlic from China,hazelnuts and almonds from the USA, and GSatsuma mandarins from South Africa, table grapes from Chile, apples from Italy and Chile, melons from Costa Rica, raisins from Italy, grapes, watermelons, dried apricots, and cabbage from Iran, lettuce from Spain, and hold on tight, dried black-eyed peas from Madagascar,and from countries around the world, including the Balkans,the wfrom all sideswe have imported live animals and red meat, and we continue to do so.

A point I would like to draw your attention tois this: Some may say there is a total increase in agriculturalproduction. The problem is that in Turkey, the population peris the lack of growth in agriculturalproduction.

The weakness in agriculture stems from our farmersincreasingly disconnecting from agriculturalproduction. In 2002, the share of agriculture in employment waswhile it was 34.9 percent, in the second quarter of 2024itfell to 14.8 percent. In other words, this share dropped from 7.5 million to 4.8 milliondropped.

Ourmarkets are overflowing with foreign goods and brands. Mostof us prefer foreign brands. Some of thesecome from countries where laboris cheaper,while others are manufactured in our own country but carry foreign brand names,which is whyconsumptionis increasing.

Every year, the balance of paymentsshows a deficit. Accordingto Turkey'sannualized data,as of October 2025while the current accountdeficit is approximately 22.0 billion US dollars, it is reported that adeficit of 67.3 billion US dollars was also recorded in thetrade balance defined by the balance of payments. Including agricultural products, every we have started to import everything.

IS THERE A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE DEFICITIN THE BALANCEOF PAYMENTS AND THE USE OF DOMESTIC GOODS?

The balance of payments deficitThere are many reasonsfor this:

• The most important reason is theneoliberal policies implementedfollowing the September 12 military coup starting in the 1980s. Under the guise ofneoliberal policies, KGlobalization was the term used. Through these policies, the state's gradual withdrawal from the economy was achieved by privatizingstate-owned enterprises. Customs barriers wereloweredproduced. Subsidies were transferred tolarge enterprises instead of small and medium-sizedenterprises.Small ones were destroyed.•

Entering theCustoms Union before being admitted to theEuropean Union (EU).was entered. Thismany negativethings to emerge. Forexample, foreign trade is now Bris carried out with policies determined in Brussels. Moreover, Turkey, because it is not a full member,has nosay in thedecisions taken.It is nota party to the EU's agreements made with third countries.with the Free Trade Agreements that have been made goods from countries like Chinaeven enter our country as if they were EU goods. Almost nocustoms dutiesare collected.

• Countries like the EU and the USA when their stocks accumulate, theynaturallyapply price discounts ontop of it. Those who want to take advantage of this, instead ofproducing goods domestically or buying the farmer'sproduce, they import goods they find cheaper from abroad. This situation not only creates unemployment through the closure of factories but also leads to the impoverishment of rural areas.

• The privatizationof state-owned enterprises and their acquisition by foreigners, along with cheap imports, areTurkey's interresearch and development (R&D) efforts are also negatively affected. Most companies are withdrawing from R&D effortsis in this situation.For example, with the acquisition of Telataş by foreign interests, the research unit called Arla is being shut down. In agriculture, regarding seeds and breeding stock, this is one of the reasons for the constant dependence on external sources. For every imported good, a resource equivalent to 20 percent of its cost is transferred to foreigninterests.is transferred to countries as R&D support.

In short, imports negatively affect domestic goods production and consumption, and increasedependency. Therefore, using domestic goods;

•Foreign debtto get rid of the burden of imports and ensure capital accumulation,,

• Reducing unemployment and poverty through increased employment,

• Taxes and feescontributingto theTurkish economyensuring that,

•being affected by global turmoilat the lowest leveland for Turkish firmsto be able to exist abroad,the increase of resources and knowledge accumulationis afrom theperspective, it is mandatory.

Celebrating the “Thrift, Investment and Turkish Goods Week” for the reasons mentioned above is, contrary to what the proponents of globalization claim, not an outdated orIt is not outdated or nostalgia, but on the contrary, it is patriotism.

Globalization is the implementation of neo-liberal policies by wealthy or metropolitan capital to sustain their profitability.entirety. To this end, world economies are being transformed into a single marketandare intended to be integrated. This is only possible by destroying or at leastlimiting the regulatory powers of nation-states.

Globalization ideologues, globaliopposing the external,and interpreting it as opposing activities to gain a share of world trade.However, without accepting neoliberal policies, national and statist-planningwith economies andthe world marketto enter is possible. These two issues areconstantly and deliberately being confused with one another.

WGlobalizers, view the idea of independent development as a danger of marginalization.According to them: "Initiatives for independent development in the economywill deprive Turkey even of subcontracted production orders linked to monopolisticcompanies and will lead to further impoverishment."

Turkey is attempting to implementneoliberal policies under theguidance of monopolisticcompanies. In this context, "The more we liberalize the economy, the more we will develop spontaneously through market dynamics. Without liberalization, foreign capital will not come either." ideas like these are being pumped into the public sphere. Almost everyone has become a liberal. Even those who arestatisthave even come to express their ideas in an implicit manner. However, the developedcountries oftoday with the liberal global systemnot, itreached this level through a planned and protectionist economic orderhas been forgotten. When all these situations are taken intoaccount, The entry of peripheral countries like Turkey into world marketswith the state's leadershipinday or with public-sectordominated firms theopportunity to emerge and compete isbeing observed.

INCREASINGTHE USE OF DOMESTIC GOODSWHAT SHOULD BE DONE?

First and foremost, it is necessary to have a strong economy.To this end:•

Instead of neoliberal policies that create dependency,a people-orientedapproach is needed.the reintroduction of a planned mixed economy based on domestic production, the state re-establishing state economic enterprises,

• Supporting small and medium-sized industrial and agriculturalenterprises through cooperatives instead of monopolies,• Increasing the resources allocated to R&D activities that will break

foreign dependency in technology and ensuringcoordination,• Implementing a national education policy that prioritizesvocational and technical training.

• Withdrawing from the Customs Union, and

• And encouraging consumers from a young age to use domestic goods. measures to encouragemust beimplemented.

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