The Event on Public Supports and Incentives for the Development of Domestic and National Production was held under the auspices of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority.
BTK took another step to support domestic and national production and organized the “Event on Public Supports and Incentives for the Development of Domestic and National Production.” The program was attended by Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu, President of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority, board members, department heads, and numerous public and sector representatives.
President Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu emphasized that "instead of merely stating on many platforms that domestic and national production is a very important issue from a sectoral perspective, they are conducting concrete studies for the development of domestic and national production within the framework of BTK's duties and powers." Karagözoğlu stated: "It has been required within the framework of these obligations that 10% of their investments containing high technology such as hardware and software used in network and communication services be met from products manufactured in our country by SMEs with domestic goods certificates. An important step has been taken to create a market in the domestic market for domestic producers with these domesticity conditions. Thus, up to 45% of the portion within mobile network investments has been allocated to domestic producers."
Drawing attention to the importance of the event organized in terms of supporting domestic production, Karagözoğlu said, "The way to make progress in domestic and national production is through the effective implementation of R&D activities. More than 80% of R&D expenditures worldwide are made in America, Europe, and Japan. R&D processes bring production and innovation along with them. In our country, R&D expenditures nearly tripled between 2006-2016, and the number of patent applications increased more than threefold."
President Karagözoğlu also provided the following information regarding frequency allocation: “With a decision taken by our Authority this year, frequency allocations in the 7, 13, and 80 GHz frequency bands have been made conditional on the use of products with domestic goods certificates. The purpose of this decision is to support our manufacturing companies in providing the production of radio link devices currently imported in our country."
President Karagözoğlu: We Are Evaluating the Contributions of 5G and Beyond Technologies to Domestic Production
Stating that transactions made with advancing technologies have changed a lot, Karagözoğlu said, “Today, our vehicles can call emergency call centers in certain accidents without human intervention, or we can monitor our vehicle's performance through some software and hardware products in our vehicles. We can obtain information about some errors and malfunctions that we would not be aware of under normal conditions, or we can communicate with vehicles in very different ways, even to who can use our vehicle and where. However, as part of cybersecurity, in order to ensure that in-vehicle communication is carried out securely, communication services in vehicles produced or imported for use in our country must be obtained from operators authorized by our Authority.”
President Karagözoğlu also expressed Turkey's position on R&D and innovation as follows: “South Korea, which was behind Turkey in the 1980s, is now reaping the fruits of its R&D and innovation activities by deriving 30% of its exports from high-tech products. The share of Turkey's high-tech product exports in total exports is around 4%. Therefore, it is very important for us to become a country that can produce with domestic and national capabilities and be self-sufficient, especially in high-tech based sectors such as communication and defense. All stakeholders, whether public or private sector, have important roles in achieving these goals.”
The “Domestic and National 5G Communication Network Project” conducted by HTK was also on Karagözoğlu's agenda. Concluding his speech, President Karagözoğlu said, “It is supported by our Presidency under the TÜBİTAK TEYDEB within the scope of the 1501 program. I think there is benefit in widespread adoption of such product-oriented projects with known buyers. For this, TÜBİTAK, KOSGEB, universities, technoparks, manufacturers, and relevant public institutions need to come together and think about what kind of product-based projects we can develop. Additionally, the Presidency of Defense Industry has tremendous experience in localization in the defense field. I think joint studies should be conducted to transfer this experience to the civilian field. With the event we will hold here today, we will exchange views on the connection of vertical sectors such as energy, health, transportation with the communication sector on the way to 5G and beyond technologies, how inter-sectoral interaction can be turned into business opportunities, what can be done in terms of domestic and national production, the role of the public in the context of domestic and national production, the supports and incentives provided, the projects carried out by the public, and increasing public-private sector cooperation.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: We Consider the Increase in Domestic and National Ratio in the Communication Sector Important
Speaking at the closing of the program, Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, emphasized the importance of domestic and national production in his speech. Deputy Minister Sayan stated, “Today, the communication sector has become very critical due to both our country's security and its central position in other sectors. The capability to design, develop, and produce in the high-tech field, which includes the communication sector, is of great importance in countries' economic development. As a country, we do not have rich underground resources. However, we have a young population with great potential to achieve tremendous things when well-educated and capable. By using our human resource correctly, we need to make a leap in technology. If we can achieve this, I believe we can escape the middle-income trap and move to the next level as a country.”
Emphasizing that as the Ministry, they attach great importance to the development of domestic and national production in the electronic communication sector as in other sectors, Sayan said, “As you know, during the preparation process of the 4.5G tender, our President drew a vision regarding the future of the electronic communication sector. At the center of this vision is the meeting of high value-added products such as hardware and software used in the critically important communication sector with domestic and national opportunities. As a reflection of this, important obligations regarding domesticity were imposed on operators with the 4.5G authorization. Both BTK and our Ministry are closely monitoring the fulfillment of these obligations.”