In the program, Adem Arıcı, who described OSTİM, its ecosystem, projects, and international relations, and provided information about the establishment of the Ohangaron Industrial Zone, emphasized that OSTİM is an industrial city consisting of 6,500 businesses.
“Uzbekistan is our ancestral homeland”
Arıcı stated: “We have very high-quality companies in our region that produce on a significant scale. With these companies, we have the ability to sell our products all over the world. This characteristic makes us stand out in Turkey as an ‘industrial city.’ OSTİM is known as the nucleus of industrialization in Turkey. OSTİM is the region where many industrial enterprises in Turkey were born, grew, and developed.”
OSTİM is an industrial cooperative founded in 1967. Its mission, established in 1967, was to be a Middle East Industrial and Trade Center. We strive to continue fulfilling that mission.
This is my third visit to Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan is our ancestral homeland. When we come here, we feel at home. We don't feel like strangers at all. Everyone speaks Turkish, and we can communicate easily. Our language and values are the same; therefore, we have never felt like strangers anywhere until now. We first came last year with our Board of Directors and business people. We came again in October. From now on, we will come more often. We are collaborating here and providing project consultancy. I would like to thank all our Uzbek friends for their hospitality.
We are a region with 55 years of industrial history; we have a great deal of knowledge and experience. We are transferring this experience primarily to the Islamic world, starting with Turkey and our brotherly countries, and to regions in need. We provide consultancy services for the establishment of industrial zones. Our region doesn't just have industrial establishments; we also have educational institutions. We have two universities and two technology development zones. We are developing projects to help 6,500 companies grow, produce more, create more jobs, increase exports, and reduce our country's dependence on foreign countries by developing high-tech products. In that respect, we are one of the regions that has made significant progress.
An industrial zone covering an area of 140 hectares
Our work began approximately 4-5 months ago with a cooperation agreement. We are establishing an industrial zone on a 140-hectare area in the Ohangaron region. At the same time, Organized Industrial Zones in Turkey have reached a very good position in the last 20 years. One of the biggest reasons for this is that there is a law defining how industrial zones should be. We will also be working on amending that legislation. We will be conducting a copper feasibility study together with OSTİM Technical University. We have started these studies with our entire team and academics. We have held meetings with Uzbekistani state institutions for this purpose.
We aim to complete our project in May 2023, making all the necessary preparations for the companies here to begin production and providing them with services in this regard. Things are going very well. We've seen significant potential in Uzbekistan, and we want to share our expertise and experience with our friends here, exceeding their expectations. This is very important to us as well. Everyone in the OSTİM management, from our Chairman to all our staff, is very excited about this project. We've completed projects in many regions, but we're particularly thrilled with this one.
OSTİM Technical University is located in the heart of OSTİM. It is the world's only industrial university. Our students' campus is the businesses in our region. Our students receive both theoretical and practical training, and when they graduate, they are not strangers to the job; they are graduates who have grown up within the job and learned the job. We train engineers with 4 years of experience. We have 2,700 foreign students from 80 different countries; approximately 15 of them are from Uzbekistan. I met with these brothers and sisters; we will work with them within the scope of the project we are carrying out. After graduation, we will recommend them to our friends here to work on this project. In this way, the friendship, brotherhood, economy, and industry between Türkiye and Uzbekistan will progress even faster. I hope it will reach the expected level.
The target is all of Uzbekistan
From now on, we want to expand this project, not only to the Ohangaron region, but also to many other regions in Uzbekistan that need it, using it as a model. Our work on this continues. The expansion of industrial zones and the increase in production and exports are very important for a country. We want to transfer our 55 years of experience from Turkey to this region with this model and then expand it to other regions. Together, God willing, we will do great things. Our friends here are also very enthusiastic and are helping us a lot. All doors are opening wide for them. We aim to take this process to even further levels.
"As OSTİM, these projects are very important for us. They are also very important in terms of cooperation between the two countries. It is also very important to start from the right place and with the right people in these matters, and we are conducting our relations with this sensitivity as much as possible. The institutions we are in contact with are also very well-intentioned and are putting a lot of effort into the future of Uzbekistan."
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