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Information About Turkey Background: The Turkish Republic was formed in 1923 after Ottoman Empire. Nationalist resistance forces led by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk defeated the occupying allies after the First World War to establish the country’s present borders. Turkey oriented its political and economic structure towards the West, becoming a member of NATO (1952) and the Council of Europe (1949) and signing an association agreement with the then European Community (1963). A customs union with the EU took effect in??1996. EU accession negotiations were opened in October 2005, but have made slow progress.
Political structure: Turkey is a secular democratic state governed under the 1982 constitution. There have been three periods of military rule in 1960-61, 1971-73 and 1980-83. The military continues to have a respected position in Turkish politics, although its constitutional powers have been reduced. The parliamentary term was cut from five years to four in October 2007. Parliament elected the current president, Abdullah Gul, in August 2007; his successor will be elected directly. Executive power will remain with the prime minister.
Parties n eed at least 10% of the national vote to win any seats. Policy issues: Turkey established an industrial base through state intervention and import protection in the post-war period. Policies shifted toward liberalisation in the 1980s. IMF-backed reforms since the 2001 financial crisis have reduced macroeconomic instability. The IMF stand-by agreement expired in May 2008, but co-operation with the Fund will continue. A large current-account deficit and heavy reliance on short-term capital inflows leave the economy vulnerable to sharp changes in investor sentiment.
Reducing unemployment and income inequality are key policy concerns, but the resources to tackle them are limited. Taxation: The basic rate of corporation tax was lowered from 30% to 20% in 2006. Personal income tax rates range between 15% and 35% (the top rate was cut from 40% in 2006). Tax reform to reduce tax evasion was one of the main elements of the IMF??programme. |??Annual data?? |??2007(a)?? |??Historical averages (%)?? |??2003-07?? | |??Population (m) |??75. 2?? |??Population growth?? |??1. ?? | |??GDP (US$ bn; market exchange rate)?? |??657(b)?? |??Real GDP growth?? |??6. 9?? | |??GDP (US$ bn; purchasing power parity)?? |??663?? |??Real domestic demand growth?? |??8. 5?? | |??GDP per head (US$; market exchange rate)?? |??8,737?? |??Inflation?? |??12. 9?? | |??GDP per head (US$; purchasing power parity)?? |??8,820?? |??Current-account balance (% of GDP)?? |??-4. 6?? | |??Exchange rate (av) YTL:US$?? |??1. 30(b)?? |??FDI inflows (% of GDP)?? |??2. ?? | Foreign trade: In 2007 exports (fob) amounted to US$115bn, while imports (fob) were US$162bn, leaving a trade deficit of US$46. 7bn. The export figures include estimates of earnings from so-called “suitcase trade”. |??Major exports 2007?? |??% of total?? |??Major imports 2007?? |??% of total?? | |??Clothing?? |??21. 1?? |??Mineral fuels?? |??19. 9?? | |??Road vehicles?? |??15. 9?? |??Chemicals?? |??13. ?? | |??Mechanical machinery?? |??8. 2?? |??Mechanical machinery?? |??13. 3?? | |??Iron?? |??7. 8?? |??Road vehicles?? |??8. 9?? | |?????? |?????? |?????? |?????? | |??Leading markets 2007?? |??% of total?? |??Leading suppliers 2007?? |??% of total?? | |??Germany?? |??11. ?? |??Russia?? |??13. 8?? | |??UK?? |??8. 0?? |??Germany?? |??10. 3?? | |??Italy?? |??7. 0?? |??China?? |??7. 8?? | |??US?? |??3. 9?? |??Italy?? |??5. 9?? | |??EU27?? |??56. 4?? |??EU27?? |??40. ?? | Swot Analysis of Turkey Strengths of Turkey’s financial system * Turkey adapted new technological infrastructure. Media was under the monopoly of government but after government let foreign companies to own maximum %49 of Medias such as Internet services, television companies, radios, and newspapers. Fox tv and Msnbc established new channels as American standards. Also Turkish republic launched 2 communication satellites in last 5 years. The biggest internet provider companies shares also bought by American firms.
A strong and reliable organizational structure in rural areas in communication with urban regions. As a Muslim country Turkey is a founder member of Organization of Islamic countries. OIC countries has a special agreement and banking rules between each other. This makes open trade doors to Mideast and some of North African countries. Also Turkey is a potential member of European Union. Turkey government and EU council is in negotiation stage but they already signed free trade agreement. In addition, Turkey is located between Asia and Europe as a bridge which has a strategic location.
The macro perspective created out of the diversity of activity areas; Serving as a model for other public institutions thanks to the quality of its activities; The effective participation of rural financial branches in the formation, application and orientation of regulations; An organizational structure that is suitable for fast and accurate decision-making; The ministry’s position as an experienced, reliable and respectable institution; Effective exploitation of international channels of cooperation; and Specialized human resources.
The weak aspects: Failing to provide an uninterrupted flow of information between units; Resistance to change; An underdeveloped understanding and culture of teamwork; Inadequate workplaces; Unnecessary bureaucratic operations and excessive “red tape-ism”; Lack of sufficient in-service training, experience abroad and foreign language skills; Lack of performance assessment and award mechanisms; Insufficient social benefits; and Failure in long-term planning and policy making. Opportunities: Steps to be taken on the way to EU membership;
Developments in supervisory techniques and standards; An increase in the educational level of workers, translating into a higher quality of worker; Economic and political stability in the country; Developing information technology and faster access to information resources; An increase in the opportunities of international collaboration in the battle against unregistered economic activity and the “economy of crime”; A young and dynamic population; and Increasing interest in the concept of strategic management.
Threats Diminishing trust in the EU and a declining belief in Turkey’s membership; Negative perception on the part of taxpayers about supervision and inspection; Lack of concern over the fragmentation of public financial management; Low propensity to save; an Lack of voluntary cooperation with tax regulations. Conclusion:
In the general assessments section, this analysis signaled that the provision of sustainable economic stability and increasing people’s welfare are dependent on improving the ability to produce effective policies. It also remarked that positive developments in the EU process require Turkey to maintain its optimism and aspirations about the future of the country.