The third SME Summit was held with the theme of Innovation and Informatics in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). KOSGEB President Uzkurt made the opening speech of the event. He reminded to the audience that KOSGEB has introduced a new support program to Turkish SME’s for supporting their digitalization efforts. Uzkurt said that I believe a new program can also be created for SMEs in Northern Cyprus with the help of this summit outcomes and experience of Digitalization Support to SMEs by KOSGEB in Turkey. He said that KOSGEB will share the experience obtained from the call for digitization with the counterpart organization KOBİGEM in the TRNC.

Who Attended the Summit?

Turkish Cypriot Investment Development Agency and Nicosia Embassy of the Republic of Turkey Office of Economic Development and Cooperation has hosted the summit. TRNC Prime Minister Ersin Tatar, President of the Assembly of the Republic Teberrüken Ulucay, Turkey's Ambassador to Nicosia, Ali Murat Başçer, TRNC Public Works and Transport Minister Toyga Atakan, Minister of Economy and Energy of the TRNC Hasan Taçoy and KOSGEB President Prof.Dr. Cevahir Uzkurt also representatives of some non-governmental organizations and professional organizations from Turkey have attended to the summit.

Corperation with 61 Countries:

Within the framework of the agreements we have made with counterpart organizations of KOSGEB in the 61 countries we are supporting not only national but also international SME ecosystem.

Our Cooperation Will Increase:

KOSGEB of Turkey and KOBİGEM of Northern Cyprus will improve the corporation in the field of SME’s by editing programs, training instructors and experts and conducting collaborative studies.

Experience Sharing:

I believe that a new SME-specific program can be created in the TRNC. In this context, I would like to state that we will share the experiences we have gained from the “Digitalization Support Program” with KOBİGEM.

We are ready to give support:

As KOSGEB, we participated in the IT and Innovation Roadmap working group which was held yesterday. I would like to reiterate that with our 30 years of experience, we are ready to provide support in all desired fields. I would like to express my gratitude to all the officials for your invitation and thank KOBİGEM for organizing the program on the behalf of our President of the Republic of Turkey.

KOSGEB and University Cooperation

At the summit, cooperation protocols were signed between Turkish and TRNC institutions and organizations. Following the summit, TRNC Prime Minister Ersin Tatar met with members of the protocol at lunch. KOSGEB President Uzkurt had a conversation with KOBİGEM Director Ebru Kaptan Sertoğlu during his contacts in TRNC. He also met with Prof.Dr. Mustafa Tümer who is the Rector of Cyprus Social Sciences University. During the meeting, KOSGEB's cooperation with universities was evaluated and the things that could be done in the context of SMEs were discussed.