EİB Delivers TRY 1.6 Billion in State Support to Exporters in First Half

State support provided to exporters through Ege İhracatçı Birlikleri (EİB) increased 49% in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching TRY 1,575 million. EİB Coordinator Chairman Muhammet Öztürk stated that state support should be raised to 1% of total exports and that foreign exchange conversion support should be increased to 5% for sustainable export growth.

State support provided by the Ministry of Commerce to enhance exporters' competitive strength in international markets increased from TRY 33 billion to TRY 45 billion in 2026, with support channelled through Ege İhracatçı Birlikleri also growing significantly.

In the January-June period of 2026, TRY 1,575 million in state support was provided to 2,325 companies and business associations through EİB. This represents a 49% increase compared to TRY 1,060 million in support during the same period of the previous year.

State support strengthens competitive capacity
EİB Coordinator Chairman Muhammet Öztürk noted that competition conditions in global trade are becoming more difficult with each passing day, and stressed the strategic importance of state support for exporters.

Öztürk stated that through eight information meetings held in seven provinces within the organization's scope of operations in 2025, exporters were enabled to benefit more effectively from state support, and that a significant increase in support utilization was achieved in the first half of 2026.

Highest support for international trade fairs
Öztürk noted that the largest support amount in the first half of the year was TRY 523.7 million for international trade fair participation, and listed the support items as follows:

International trade fair participation support: TRY 523.7 million
TURQUALITY Programme: TRY 301.4 million
Global supply chain support: TRY 190.8 million
Domestic trade fair participation support: TRY 162 million
Market entry certificate support: TRY 107.8 million
Unit rental support: TRY 89.1 million
E-export support: TRY 45.3 million
UR-GE Project Support: TRY 45.1 million

Öztürk stated that the increase in UR-GE project support from TRY 2.5 million to TRY 45.1 million demonstrates the development of firms' capacity to conduct higher-value-added exports through clustering.

Support budget should grow with exports
Recalling that Turkey annually achieves approximately USD 400 billion in goods and services exports, Muhammet Öztürk stated that state support should be increased in line with sustainable export growth.

Öztürk noted that raising the state support budget to at least 1% of Turkey's total exports would significantly increase exporters' global competitive strength.

Foreign exchange conversion support should be 5%
Addressing the importance of supporting exporters' cash flow during the current period of high financing access costs, Öztürk reiterated the call for the 3% foreign exchange conversion support applied by the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey to be increased to 5% and announced annually.