Visit of the South African Delegation to the Istanbul Specialized Free Zone
A delegation of officials from the South African Department of Trade, Industry and Competition together with Special Economic Zone and company executives visited ISBI; investment and export incentives were discussed in mutual presentations.
A delegation comprising the South African Department of Trade, Industry and Competition and senior executives of the Specialized Economic Zone, the Special Economic Zones and companies in the region visited ISBI.
During the visit, ISBI General Manager Ergenekon Kucuk emphasised the importance of specialized free zones and underlined that they make a significant contribution to Turkiye's production, employment and export strength.
Following the speeches, presentations were given on ISBI's work, while the South African delegation provided information on economic policies in their country such as investment incentives and export incentives.
Highlights of the Visit
The meetings compared the free zone and special economic zone models of the two countries. The prominent features of Turkiye's free zone practice were listed as supporting export-oriented production, increasing qualified employment, shortening supply chains and facilitating technology transfer. The delegation showed interest in ISBI's structure as a specialized free zone focused on software, IT and advanced technology.
Why Is the Specialized Free Zone Model Different?
Unlike classic free zones, specialized free zones focus on particular sectors. This focus allows companies working in the same field to be located side by side, to share common infrastructure and to form an ecosystem in which they feed one another. The information sharing, access to qualified labour and joint promotion opportunities that clustering brings have an accelerating effect, particularly for companies that are new to exporting.
Opportunities for International Cooperation
The mutual presentations addressed investment and export incentives, permit and licensing processes and the services offered in the zones. Visits of this kind provide valuable ground for developing bilateral trade, assessing joint investment models and opening the door to new markets for the companies operating in the zone. ISBI plans to continue with similar delegation visits and institutional cooperation meetings.
About ISBI and the Istanbul Specialized Free Zone
The Istanbul Specialized Free Zone brings together infrastructure, logistics and operational conveniences for companies engaged in software, information technologies and advanced technology manufacturing. For how the zone works and the opportunities it offers, see our Free Zone page; for the steps of the investment process, our Investment page; and for the support we provide, our Services page. Information about our corporate structure can be found on the About Us page.
For your questions you can reach us through the channels on our Contact page, follow current announcements in the Blog section, and find answers to commonly asked topics on our Frequently Asked Questions page.
