Domestic goods, domestic production...

“Thrift, Investment and Turkish Goods Week,” or as it is better known, “Domestic Goods Week”… 

“Domestic Goods Week,” which became law in 1929 and has been celebrated between December 12-18 since 1946, was of great importance for the protection of our country's economic independence and for a sustainable economic infrastructure.

It was celebrated to remind citizens of the importance of using domestic goods, being thrifty, and investing. However, starting from the 1980s, its meaning was hollowed out, reduced to eating fruit and nuts in schools, and subsequently forgotten. USİAD remembered and celebrated Domestic Goods Week for years. It emphasized Turkey's strategic sectors, the scientific nature of production technology policies, the support of domestic production, and the use of domestic goods. In the last few years, there have been attempts by administrators and various institutions to remind people of it again, and emphasis has been placed on domestic production, but it is still not at a sufficient level…

The Western view of “Always leaving underdeveloped countries as raw material producers, and turning the raw materials we obtain from them into finished goods to offer for their consumption”

(a perspective accepted at the 1932 London Economic Conference, Nazmi Kal) was overcome by the planned mixed economy approach of the young Republic under the leadership of Atatürk.

By 1938, Turkey had become a country that produced many of its basic needs and manufactured aircraft as well as iron and steel.

Although industrialization slowed, protectionism in industry was maintained through economic policies applied until the 1980s. With the January 24 decisions (1980) and the subsequent policies integrated into the neoliberal system, protectionism was abandoned. Turkey effectively turned into a market for imported goods, and a consumer society began to replace the producer society.

The words of our Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1923, “No matter how great political victories may be, they cannot be permanent if they are not supported by economic victories,” still retain their importance.

Instead of neoliberal policies that create economic dependency, populist policies that are based on production and will eliminate foreign dependency in technology stand before us as a necessity.

THE SITUATION IN THE WORLD AND IN TURKEY

The Turkish economy, currently the 23rd largest economy in the world, produces 0.9 percent of global income and runs a foreign trade deficit. The information provided by development economist Bartu Soral, former Director of the UNDP Turkey Program, in his presentation titled “Globalization and the Economy of Victory” is striking.

I would like to share some of the notes I took:

-As of 2024, the top 5 sectors in the world by total market value are, in order: semiconductors (6 trillion 815 billion dollars), internet content information (5 trillion 996 billion dollars), software infrastructure (4 trillion 950 billion dollars), consumer electronics (3 trillion 287 billion dollars), and pharmaceutical manufacturers (3 trillion 17 billion dollars).

-It is estimated that the global artificial intelligence market size was worth 454 billion dollars as of 2023. This figure is expected to reach 2.5 trillion dollars by 2032. The US, followed by China and the UK, are the countries investing the most in this field.

-In terms of share of global income (2023), the US ranks first with 26.1 percent, followed by China with 16.9 percent, the European Union with 17.5 percent, G7 countries excluding the US with 14.8 percent, and Germany with 4.3 percent. Turkey's share is 0.89 percent.

Soral lists his solution proposals as follows:

-Instead of imports, macroeconomic policies that encourage domestic production in every possible field should be implemented.

-A competitive, innovative, and productive economy. A regulated, supervised, planned, and mixed economic model…

-To enter global competition, there is a need for giant companies through public-private partnerships.

-A competitive exchange rate policy that does not surrender to hot money…

-Turkey produces 13 percent of its electricity from renewable sources; this rate can be increased to 50 percent.

-China's possession of 16.9 percent of the world's income today is not due to neoliberalism, but to planning.

-Turkey must return to its tradition of planning. The State Planning Organization (DPT) must be re-established.

-Policies that are mandatory for the public sector and guiding for the private sector should be implemented.