site.btaBulgarian, Turkish, Romanian Business Execs, Officials Attend Balkan Business Summit

Bansko hosted a Balkan Business Summit on June 7 and 8. The purpose of the event was to enhance inter-Balkan regional economic cooperation and foster successful future partnerships. Taking part were business executives of the automotive industry, construction, metals, IT, tourism and other sectors and officials of Bulgaria, Turkey and Romania.

The forum was organized by the Bulgarian-Turkish Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BULTISAD), the Bulgarian-Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BRCCI) in partnership with the Commercial Section at the Turkish Embassy in Bulgaria, the Turkish-Bulgarian Business Council with Turkiye's Foreign Economic Business Board (DEIK), the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency (BSMEPA) and the InvestBulgaria Agency (IBA). The event was a successor to the Bulgarian-Turkish Business Forums held in 2022 and 2023 and aspires to become the Balkans' largest annual B2B gathering.

Opening the forum, BULTISAD Management Board Chair Burhan Nemutlu said that the attendance by representatives of institutions from the three countries ensures that trade and economic relations among them are moving in the right direction. BULTISAD brings together some 50% of the majority Turkish-owned companies as well as Bulgarian companies. "Our main goals are to attract investments, to promote various investment and business opportunities in Bulgaria and in Turkey, and to organize business forums," Nemutlu said further. 

Turkish-Bulgarian Business Council Chair Zeki Saribekir said that "we regard Bulgaria as our door to enter Europe". He noted that Bulgaria offers ample opportunities for business and expressed his confidence that cooperation and teamwork can be reinforced while the two countries can help each other by such forums. Saribekir wished the forum to be extended to other Balkan countries as well next year.

The over 400 members of the two chambers (BRCCI and BULTISAD) are among the most influential businesses in the three countries and they employ between 70,000 and 100,000 people, said BRCCI President Viktor Gugushev at the start of Saturday's forum. Along with trade among the three countries, he sees this as an indication of the importance of Bulgaria and its neighbours Romania and Turkey.  

DEIK Foreign Investment Commission Chair Kubra Orakcioglu Kazan spoke about Turkish companies in Bulgaria, Turkish companies in Turkiye, and the two countries' shared culture and history. She noted that there are many women leaders in Bulgaria and thanked Bulgarian women for being so active in business activities. 

"Today's meeting is particularly important because Bulgaria and Turkiye have long-time ties and there is a huge potential for further development of these relations," said Bansko Mayor Stoycho Banenski. "I expect the forum to turn into a platform for the exchange of ideas and experience and for the establishment of new business links and partnerships," the Mayor said further, adding that partnership can and must be expanded in technologies, tourism, the energy sector, agriculture and cultural exchanges.

At two panels, the participants in the Balkan Business Summit were able to discuss options for trade and investments in the Balkans and technologies, innovation, the regulatory framework and financing. The first panel was moderated by SeeNews Sales Director Kremena Palyonova Schwartz. The moderator of the second panel was BSMEPA Executive Director Boyko Takov. The panelists included InvestBulgaria Agency Executive Director Mila Nenova, Commercial Attache Armagan Al of Turkiye's Consulate General in Plovdiv, Minister Counsellor Radu Moldovan of the Trade and Economic Promotion Office at Romania's Embassy in Sofia, Thrace Development Agency Secretary-General Mahmut Sahin, and BRCCI Executive Director Eleonora Ivanova.