His Excellency Ilhan Saygili, the Ambassador of Turkiye in the Republic of Serbia visited Kruševac and attended a meeting with the representatives of the City of Kruševac: Mayor Ivan Manojlović and Head of City Administration Vesna Anđelić. Director of Regional Chamber of Commerce (RCC) Maja Marković also participated in the discussions, with her associates.
Ambassador Saygili was visiting Kruševac for the first time since his appointment the previous year.
The discussion was told to have been very consutructive and inspiring.
His Excellency Ilhan Saygili told that the meeting was foremost about the aspects of economy and industry in the city, with a special focus on the Regional Park of Industry and Technology, currently under construction in Kruševac. The exchange of knowledge and experience would reciprocally develop markets, as a large number of Turkish IT companies operate in Kruševac. Another topic was the construction of one of the most important national projects, Morava Corridor, as the US – Turkish company “Bechtel – Enka” is the chief contractor on the project.
After the presentation about the investment and economic potentials of Kruševac, a conclusion had been made that there were many fields in which the bilateral relations could be improved, fields of economy, education, science, and culture.
Mayor Manojlović thanked His Excellency for visiting Kruševac, stating that the exceptional relations had been maintained on the national level, which was helpful for the good cooperation in specific projects in all spheres.
“Ambassador Ilhan Saygili was an excellent choice for the position due to his grand vision, which will, hopefully, beneficially affect the citizens of both Serbia and Turkiye. Additionally, I hope that today’s visit will be just the first of many”.
Director Marković talked about the good cooperation between the RCC and the Embassy of Turkiye, highlighting the great support by the Embassy’s Department of Economy during the organization of Fair and Expo visits in Serbia and Turkiye.
In 2024, the economic exchange increased (51,1 million EUR, +26,6%). The export was tripled and import was increased by 10 percent.
The companies located in Rasina Administrative District that had the largest import percentage were Goodyear, Trayal, and Valvoline. Some companies also have a wide array of exported goods (car, bicycle, and field machine tires, metal sector products, rose seedlings…).
Turkish products that are exported to Kruševac are mostly textile production machine equipment and parts, textile itself, electrical equipment, and others.
There are 180 companies from the Rasina District who import goods from Turkiye, and 20 who export their goods to Turkiye.
With the Embassy of Turkiye and Serbian – Turkish Association, business meetings with the companies within the RCC are planned to be held later this year.
After the meeting’s conclusion, the delegation continued their tour of Kruševac by visiting the Regional Park of Industry and Technology, Morava Corridor, and the furniture company “Magnar”.
