Hasan Önal, Head of E-Export Digital Marketing, Behavioral Public Policies and New Generation Technologies Department of the Ministry of Commerce General Directorate of Exports, stated that they increased the number of target countries from 18 to 35 with the current developments in global trade and the removal of customs exemptions in some countries.
Önal, in a program he attended in Antalya, said that e-commerce is growing faster thanks to technological transformation.
Stating that Türkiye has gained significant momentum in the field of e-export in recent years, Önal said, “When we set out, we established the E-Export Digital Marketing, Behavioral Public Policies and New Generation Technologies Department in 2022. We implemented export supports in 2023. At that time, exports were 2 billion dollars. We increased this to 6.4 billion dollars.” he said.
Stating that there is a data shortage in measuring e-export data, Önal noted that the figures are actually much higher.
Emphasizing that some countries follow Türkiye’s efforts closely, Önal said, “Saudi Arabia is closely examining Türkiye in the field of e-export. They evaluate that the most successful example of e-export policy after China is in Türkiye.” gave the information.
“COMPANYS ARE EXPANDING TO THE WORLD ESPECIALLY THROUGH GLOBAL MARKETPLACES”
Hasan Önal said, “Within the scope of the distant countries strategy in e-export, we initially determined 18 countries as target markets. With the current developments in global trade and the removal of customs exemptions in some countries, we increased the number of target countries to 35.” he said.
Explaining that they recently included countries such as Germany, France and Romania in the target countries group, Önal said:
“The priority country in e-export is the USA. The USA is followed by Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and Germany. Companies are opening up to the world, especially through global marketplaces. In e-export, the USA is very important for our companies and they are expanding through marketplaces. Our e-export supports are actually in a model that will support expansion through marketplaces. We have prepared the guide for 27 marketplaces so far. In this sense, we aim for our companies to reach the entire global market by emphasizing sales in international global marketplace platforms rather than countries.”
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SUPPORTED PLATFORMS ARE BEING DEVELOPED
Önal emphasized that technological transformation is the basis of digital transformation and that artificial intelligence is one of the most important topics today.
Stating that they, as the Ministry, have developed artificial intelligence-supported information platforms, Önal continued as follows:
“Our Ministry is developing platforms supported by artificial intelligence to meet the information needs of our companies. As the Ministry, we attach importance to strengthening trade with artificial intelligence technologies. In this context, we plan to hold a workshop with TOBB in the near future. Our Minister’s vision in the field of digitalization and artificial intelligence gives a strong direction to our work. In line with this vision, our Ministry continues to develop digital solutions that will enable our exporters to access information faster and position themselves more effectively in global competition.”
Pointing out that they also organize global scale organizations in order to contribute to the development of the e-export ecosystem, Önal stated that the Istanbul Global E-Export Summit (IGEXX) will be held in the first week of September.
Önal stated that 33 global marketplaces participated in the first summit held in 2024 and that IGEXX has become an important meeting point for global marketplaces.
Pointing out that there are supports for foreign trademark registration, opening of warehouses abroad and similar areas in the “Export Supports” section of the official website of the Ministry of Commerce, Önal noted that in the “E-Export Supports” section, companies are provided with support on issues such as advertising, promotion, marketplace commission expenses and local consultancy in foreign marketplaces.
Önal added that citizens can learn how to do e-export in 10 steps by logging into the system with their e-Government password via the e-Easy Export Platform.
