Dutch Consul General in Istanbul

Irregularly I will write about developments in Turkey that might be interesting for (Dutch) companies. Turkey is a very dynamic market; both in its own right and as regional hub. The real potential of Turkey is underestimated; this blog will contribute to changing this.

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031. Amsterdam is wearing the trousers: sustainable Denim and Turkish investments

The Netherlands, Turkey, Amsterdam,  jeans,  sustainability and making money: on 16 April 2015, part of the international denim industry will start its ‘Denim City Project’ in Amsterdam. We at the Dutch consulate in Istanbul are proud to host its pre-launch next week. 

“In the near future, sustainability will turn into something imperative rather than being just a choice”. 

Sustainability is a core-value of the ‘Denim City Project’. Worn denims will be sorted, repaired, re-used and recycled. A denim archive will be created that will open its doors for the public to sit and snoop around. Local denim ‘Embassies’ will connect players in the industry. Thousands of students will be educated to become a new generation of brand managers, designers and decision-takers, all with a solid knowledge of sustainable production.

“Producing one pair of jean requires the use of approximately 7.000 liters of water and about half its own weight in toxic chemicals”.

Amsterdam promotes itself as an international Denim city. In this context the ‘Denim City Project” is a valuable contribution. Turkey, as an important international player in the denim world, also participates, through the involvement of the Turkish company ‘FG group’. With this, the ‘Denim City project’ is yet another example of mutually beneficial Turkish-Dutch economic cooperation. 

Foreign Investments in the Netherlands: Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency

‘FG Group’ is certainly not the only Turkish company that invests in the Netherlands. Remember the recent investments the Turkish breakfast and lunch chain Simit Sarayi made in the bigger cities of the Netherlands; they already have 10 outlets. Or Ülker with Verkade. And Eroğlu taking over Mexx. In 2014 Turkish investments created 120 new jobs in the Netherlands; 2015 is expected to be even more successful.

The Netherlands reported record levels of foreign direct investment by foreign companies last year. Our Dutch (business) climate and assistance by the ‘Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency’ (NFIA) attracted 187 new foreign investment projects, representing nearly 3.5 billion dollar in planned investment and the creation of 6,304 new jobs in the Netherlands.

The ‘Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency’, an operational unit of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, helps and advises companies that wish to invest in the Netherlands.The NFIA operates worldwide and also has an office at the Consulate in Istanbul, covering all of Turkey.

Official pre-launch ‘Denim City’ at Palais de Hollande

All the ‘Blue Gold’ of the Turkish and Dutch jeans industry will gather in Istanbul next week. The ‘Denim City project’ will proudly be pre-launched at the Dutch Consulate on the 25th of March with a speech from James Veenhoff (‘Denim City’ manager).

The dress-code for that evening reception? Jeans of course, also for diplomats.

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030 Maritime love: Europort Istanbul, 11-14 March 2015

Dutch and water. All what people say about us is true. We did create almost half of our country and 70% of our GDP is produced below sea-level. In the process of creating the Netherlands we had to cooperate even with those we did not like; this explains how we developed the world famous  ‘polder model’ (basically talking as long as needed with all stakeholders to reach a vaguely worded consensus).

I just read the news that the Dutch Government appointed its first Water Ambassador. Long overdue, the Dutch should have done this a long, long time ago as sea water is in our veins and water technology is one of our strongest points. Ask any of the 1.3 billion Chinese what they know about the Netherlands and he/she will mention “agriculture” and “water”. Most likely this also applies to Turkey, although Turks will add the tulip and Dirk Kuijt (if he/she is fan of Fenerbahçe) or Wesley Sneijder (for the Galatasaray fans).

My parents went to Aruba to work there for 5 years. They could have easily taken the plane, but preferred to go by ship, the MS Willemstad. And the return trip? Also via sea of course. I myself love ferries, I love the Bosporus and I love the sound of early ship sirens waking us up. For many years I wanted to become a captain sailing from coast to coast; it did not work, but I assume that being a Dutch diplomat is second best.

From 11-14th of March  the 13th edition took place of Europort Istanbul, organized by Ahoy Rotterdam and its Turkish partner. It is the largest maritime conference in this region. As they say ‘tout’ maritime Turkey was there, and so were the Dutch: 60 representatives from 30 companies. After my speech I was able to meet with many of them. At present the economic situation is full with challenges, but it was encouraging to learn that they were quite upbeat about the long term prospects of the Turkish maritime sector. The reception at the Dutch Consulate in Istanbul on Friday March 13th was well attended; maritime people do understand each other.

Some Turkish maritime stats Turkey has a number of strong economic sectors, from construction, logistics, textile, white goods, chemical industry, cars to tourism, finance and health tourism. The maritime sector is to my surprise often overlooked. Turkey is the 10th largest shipbuilder’s nations in the world, with projects under way related to coastal traffic, offshore, new harbors, production and regional inter-connectivity. Turkey has 8500 km coast line, with 280.000 people employed, generating 5 bln Euro of GDP. It is the third producer in the world of mega yachts and the 5th when it comes to ship recycling. There are rail, plane and road connections with the Caucuses and more are to come. Turkey’s logistic potential in the region is 350 mln people, many of them living in markets that are difficult to reach from the Netherlands. Ambitions are many, like reaching 32 mln TEU in 2023 or awarding green certificates to 50% of its ports.

What the Dutch have to offer The Dutch maritime cluster comprises 12 subsectors and 12,000 companies, which employ 185,300 employees and generate an annual turnover of 26.3 billion euros. These companies focus on technologies such as electronics, cooling equipment, and transport equipment. The maritime cluster has a strong international focus: over 60 percent of turnover is exported.

Both countries have centuries old maritime sectors and there is already a long standing cooperation. There is room for expanding as we  are complementary: Turkey with its size, ambitions to grow and its position in this region and The Netherlands with its advanced technology, experience and export oriented industry.

By the way,  not all people say about the Dutch and water is true: the sweet story of Hansje Brinker and his finger in a dike to save our country is just that, a sweet story.

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029 Women's rights in Turkey

8th March, International Women’s day. In many countries this means a lot of chocolate and expensive (Dutch) roses. A bit like Valentine’s day, but then for colleagues. In other countries however 8th March has become more important over the years, leading to intense social and political discussions concerning women’s rights. Turkey is one of these countries, as women’s rights are all but undisputed.

8th March: Invitations are pouring in, all interesting and relevant. We, as the diplomatic network in Turkey contribute by organizing a thematic lunch about women’s rights and hosting a reception for Transparency International. During that reception one of the main messages was about women being less corrupt and more committed in fighting corruption. We attended several conferences including the Istanbul Stock Exchange promoting participation of more Turkish women in economic life. Of course we signed in to the HeForShe campaign, launched last Wednesday in Turkey. Within two days more than 1200 men showed their support. And finally let us not forget our Matra and human rights projects.

Violation of women’s rights is a worldwide problem and so it is in Turkey. Discussion about sexual violence erupted last month again as a response to the brutal murder of student Özgecan Aslan. Protests, solidarity and disconcerting studies followed shortly after. One report indicated that all Turkish women aged 15 and above have had to deal with some form of unwanted sexual intimacy or sexual violence. An other report stated that a majority of the population tolerated some sort of violence against women. This is not consistent with the way I see Turkish women who in my experience are strong and proud. The Global Gender Gap Index of the World Economic Forum indicates that I might be wrong. Since its start in 2006, Turkey finds itself in the lowest regions. Some say because of wrong statistics. But now, eight years later, I fear the statistics might be true. Turkey hoovers somewhere between the 105th and 129th place, with the 125th place out of 142 countries in 2014.

These were some of the subjects during the thematic lunch for women’s rights at the Consulate. Representatives from universities, a shelter, the leading political party and an economic organization took part They were all positive, for whom the glass is slightly fuller than a few decades ago, but by far not full enough. All participants agreed on the low ranking of Turkey on the Global Gender Gap Index. Remarkably, since Turkish people are proud of their country and do not express criticism easily. Conclusions? Politicians, media, culture and women themselves are to blame for the present situation and solutions must be found in a more active role by the government, setting quotas and a change in the attitudes among men and women. 

Currently economic participation of women in Turkey is one of the lowest in the world (30%); on the other hand, when it comes to women in the boards of directors of corporations Turkey does well (11%, no 2 in Europe). I was particularly interested in the future ranking of Turkey on the Global Gender Gap Index of Turkey. The consensus was just 10-15 places higher during the next generation. My guests seemed, a bit to my surprise, pleased with this.

8th March: On my desk I have for the women at the Consulate 28 bags of chocolate, finished with a red bow and a message from the HeForShe campaign. Male colleagues will, as last year, make some remarks. They are welcome to do so and I am happy to offer them chocolate: at the start of a SheForHe campaign.

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028 Renewed Istanbul infrastructure boom (1): airport and cruise terminal

Without much ado in greater Istanbul a series of multi billion dollar infrastructural projects is being implemented putting Istanbul on the first spot when it comes to new infrastructure in Europe. Some projects are controversial (third airport, the canal), others too long delayed (the expansion of the metro network), but one thing is for sure: their impact on the future face and functioning of Istanbul will be huge.

We talk about a third bridge over and two more tunnels under the Bosporus Strait, an airport billed as the world’s largest, the largest container terminal of Turkey, a new waterway that will run parallel to the Bosporus, 100 km’s of new metro lines, a new cruise port and a ring road around the sea of Marmara including additional bridges. 

Istanbul’s third airport: a much-debated project Istanbul already has two busy and growing airports; Istanbul Atatürk Airport (no 4 in Europe, already bigger than Schiphol) and Sabiha Gökçen. Yet, the possibilities to expand these airports are limited.  

The new airport is under construction at the intersection of junction roads of Arnavutköy, Göktürk and Çatalca on the European side. The expectations are that the first part – the main terminal building with a passenger capacity of 90 million- will be completed by 2017. When all the stages are completed, the airport will have a passenger capacity of 150 million with four terminal buildings, four runways and eight control towers. The costs will be around ten billion dollars, and the construction of the airport will provide employment to 100.000 people. Once the project is completed, it will annually enable 120.000 people to earn their living at the third Istanbul Airport. 

The construction is a controversial subject as several environmental groups launched (in vain) campaigns since a huge forest area needed to be sacrificed. Traveling from the Netherlands to Turkey in a little more than three hours and then getting stuck in the traffic between the airport and the center, for the equal amount of time? A high-speed rail line is planned from both the third airport and Sabiha Gökçen airport to Taksim.

The renewed cruise terminal: a touch of glamor Salıpazarı-Karaköy Cruise Port (commonly known as the Galata Port) aims to expand its capacity from 500.000 cruise tourists, to three million annually. An investment by Doğus Group of almost 400 million dollar has to make this possible. Especially the number of daily tourists with a high income will increase. Tophane coast will be transformed into a public square, including the construction of shopping malls, hotels and restaurants.  At this moment, only two to four ships can dock in Istanbul at the same time.

Besides this important economic function of the renewed cruise terminal, Salıpazarı also serves another mission. It will be the supply and evacuation center of the city in the event of a (earthquake) disaster.

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027 “Meet the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs” in Istanbul

A group of thirty students ‘Office Management’ from Rotterdam enters the 18th century church of the Dutch Consulate in Istanbul. Slightly intimidated by the beauty of this ‘house of worship’, the group seems shy at first. As I am on a business trip this time they are received by Jeroen Gankema (head of the Press and Cultural Affairs Department) who after his introduction leaves ampel time for questions. 

‘Are there still services being held in this church?’

‘Yes,  three services every Sunday, with 100-150 people each time,’ Jeroen answers, ‘We have an excellent relationship with the board of the Union Church of Scotland, already for over 150 years. After every service our King is thanked for letting the congregation use these premises'. Then Jeroen points to a wooden bar with the sentence “De Heere is groot en zeer te prijzen” (God is great and should to be praised) written on it above the altar. His remark is answered by silence and questioning gazes. The students start giggling when a projection screen descends from the bottom of the bar. ‘In this church we also give lectures, organize performances, have human rights debates and let Dutch companies introduce their products. Last year we organized over 160 events at this consulate; many of them took place in the church.’

These students from Rotterdam aren’t the only ones visiting us. As part of the ‘Meet the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’-program (‘In gesprek met BZ’), the Dutch Consulate General welcomes more than fifty (mainly student) groups annually. The goal of the program is to show the public the activities and aims of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs while providing them with general information about Istanbul and Turkey and explaining the work of Embassies and Consulates.

Most of the student groups which visit the consulate are on a study trip. In general they arrive well dressed and prepared. A few at times use the opportunity to sit down in the church for a nap to recover from their long nights out in Istanbul. They have my full sympathy of course, but fortunately we always manage to engage in interesting discussions. There is a lot to ask and tell about Turkey, an important country few of us in The Netherlands understand well.

After a tour through the palace, some drinks and a traditional group picture on the steps of the consulate, the students from Rotterdam are about to leave. One of the students is quite curious and keeps asking questions.

‘Can you tell me something secret about the activities at the Consulate General?’ (Secret things do happen, but as they are confidential there is nothing I will tell about them)

‘What’s the difference between an Embassy and a Consulate?’ (Read the blog of the consul general)

‘Is this Dutch territory?’ (No)

‘Do you accept trainees?” (Yes, like the one who wrote this blog ;-)).

Are you organizing a trip to Istanbul, and would you like to have a briefing at and a discussion with the Consulate General? Send a request per  e-mail to [email protected]. We focus on student groups, but others are also welcome.

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026 Tekirdağ 6 February: another business day trip outside the big city

Yes, a quarter of the GDP in Turkey is generated in and by Istanbul. It is unavoidable to be drawn to the dynamics and potential of Istanbul; Napoleon already said that if there were to be one world capital it should be Constantinople (as Istanbul was known before). And indeed , as a visitor or someone living in this great city one feels the vibration on every corner. 

However, ¼ production in Istanbul implies that ¾ comes from the rest of Turkey, which at times tends to get unnoticed. For this reason the Dutch Consulate General in Istanbul organized for the second time a regional business mission on February the 6th. This time to the province of Tekirdağ, in Western Turkey, a two hour drive from Istanbul. Last year we went to Kocaeli on the Asian side, a 1 ½ hour drive from Istanbul.

Economic diplomacy is a main task of Dutch missions abroad, building bridges and assisting in connecting Dutch and foreign companies. These regional missions are one of our instruments. It is relatively low key; just one or two days to a promising location outside Istanbul, to get to know the governor and mayor, have a meeting at the Chamber of Commerce, do some matchmaking, have a reception and visit a company or two. This recipe was also applied this time during our one day visit to Tekirdağ. Leaving early at 7.30 (with coffee of course) and returning at 20.00, after a dinner at a well known fish restaurant for the whole delegation.

One of the main reasons to visit Tekirdağ is the newly built Asyaport which is scheduled to become Turkey’s largest container port. When combining the new container port with the upcoming high way around the sea of Marmara with its new bridges and the link with the new airport of Istanbul it is clear that Tekirdağ has a bright future.

The delegation counted 29 persons. One satisfied participant: “I would like to thank you and the team for organizing the mission to Tekirdağ last week.It was the first time for me attending such an event and, aside from being a great experience, I also met a lot of interesting people with whom I will stay in contact. In addition, it is really inspiring to see how the Netherlands is taking initiative to build our Dutch brand across Turkey”.

Holland-Turkey Business Tour 2015 The concept of regional business tours was introduced to Turkey by Ambassador Ron Keller, who had experience with this concept in his previous postings. This year the Dutch diplomatic network will expand on this idea by a whole series of regional business trips and other economic activities. Colleague Jeroen Kelderhuis branded this as the Holland-Turkey Business Tour 2015. The next business trip from Istanbul will be to Bursa this spring, one of the industrial centers of Turkey with many opportunities for the Dutch supply industry. 

Are you interested in participating in the regional mission to Bursa, most likely in spring 2015? Do you want to know more about the Holland-Turkey Business Tour? Send an email to [email protected] for more information about the Bursa trip. For the Holland-Turkey Business Tour have a look at http://www.hollandturkeytrade.com/en  or watch this link http://player.vimeo.com/external/117388651.source.mp4?s=dd1baef0445e80d20d1c6413212d7efd&download=1

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025 A health(y) business: Dutch medical tourists to Turkey

(c. picture Haberindeks) A patient undergoing an eye treatment in Istanbul.

A few months ago, while travelling by bus, a man asked me: ‘Do you know where I need to leave the bus to reach Taksim Square?’ His accent was clear, so I answered him in Dutch. He looked confused and lost. I asked if he liked Istanbul. He didn’t: too many people and too noisy. ‘I am only here to accompany my daughter; she is undergoing a medical treatment right now at an eye hospital. We heard that eye laser treatments are cheaper and better here in Turkey.’ 

Medical tourism to Turkey

According to the World Tourism Organization, in 2013 almost 200.000 tourists visited Turkey for (cosmetical) surgical procedures, from hair transplants and eye laser surgery to cancer and orthopedic treatments. These medical tourists are mostly from Western European countries, but also from (north) African and Middle-Eastern countries such as Libya and the United Arab Emirates. 

Medical tourism: a promising business 

In the beginning of my stay in Turkey I saw a lot of men walking around, wearing a headband around their bald, red heads. I was wondering if they were part of a new religious group or victims of (war) violence. Only later I realized that all these men were recovering from hair transplantation treatments. Medical tourism in Turkey is popular because of the relatively low prices, the excellent private healthcare and the absence of long waiting lists. The number of medical tourists to Turkey keeps on rising; in the first six months of 2014 the revenues out of medical treatments already reached 328 mln USD with over 150.000 foreign patients. 

Turkish-Dutch opportunities

In this booming sector Turkish-Dutch businesses take the opportunity to invest in medical tourism, a sector that is also marked by the Turkish government as one of its priorities and aiming for billions of USD revenue. Corendon has a ‘Corendon Care’ department combining medical treatments with a sun-sand-sea holiday in Turkey. And Dunyagoz (eye) hospital has employees who speak Dutch. Among Dutch medical travelers especially eye laser surgery and dental treatments are popular, since health insurance generally doesn’t cover these costly treatments in the Netherlands. 

My personal experiences with Turkish dentists are excellent. I am one of those male heroes who only allow dentists to look at my teeth when promising that he/she (female dentists are the most caring) will be extremely careful. Unfortunately I am a regular visitor, but when it comes to quality/price ratio the Turkish are by far the best. The only drawback is that my dentist loves talking about politics. As a patient not easy to react.

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024 Simit Sarayi, a succesful Turkish investment in the Netherlands

There are many successes to be reported about Turkish Dutch economic co-operation. The Dutch newspaper NRC recently published an article by Marloes de Koning on Simit Sarayi, a Turkish chain of over 300 cafetaria’s/restaurants selling Simits and other bread products.

The Turkish economy is globalizing and investing abroad is part of this. There are many considerations to invest in a country. The Netherlands will not always be the first choice, but, as I always tell Turkish companies, you do yourselves a disfavour if you do not put The Netherlands on your short list.

The time of Frank Sinitra is gone with his “if you can make it in New York, you can make it everywhere”; Simit Sarayi has modernised it: “if you can make in the Netherlands, you can make it everywhere”. Yes, just as Sony first tried the Dutch market in Europe so has Simit Sarayi decided to expand its first European branches in the Netherlands. The German market would at first glance have been a more logic decision with over 2 million Turks living in Germany. Simit Sarayi however has European ambitions: “test the Dutch and if it works go for the rest”. This decision turned out to be the start of a success story. In the Netherlands the 10th Simit Sarayi has been opened in just over a year;the goal is to finally have 50 establishments in the Netherlands in the coming few years and a few hunderd in Europe.

Simits are popular in Turkey. A simit is a ring of white bread, dipped in sesam seeds. Personnaly I only like them when they are very fresh; most people however eat them all the time. Just walk through Istanbul and you see the small simitci cars every where. 1 Turkish Lira only. We Dutch love these kind of prices. I go for the fresh acma myself, but at times a good simit with some cheese, tomatoes and cucumbers does taste very well.

Were we involved in this Turkish investment? Yes. The Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA) Turkey, with its office in Istanbul, accompanied the investment proces. The official launching of the chain in the Netherlands took place during a reception at the Dutch Consulate and the company is now using the Orange Carpet Facility in order to facilitate the visa process. The NFIA assisted Simit Sarayı together with the Hague Municipality to find a site for production and to set up their European Distribution Centre also in the Hague. And, perhaps most important, they have become our friends.

Some of my blogs, as this one, are dedicated to Dutch Turkish business success stories. If you wish to share one with me, please send a mail to [email protected].

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023 hashtag #rights365 and occupational health in Turkey

“Dear guests, my staff asked me to kindly require you to use the following hashtag: #rights365”.  No one looked surprised, most notted it down and used it for their tweets on the 10th December international human rights day seminar at the Dutch Consulate in Istanbul.

Amazing how in just a few years social media got integrated in our daily work. The hashtag #rights365 is a great one: short (with twitter they really have to be short, no #nlinternationalhumanrightsday as they take up too much of the 140 characters) and with a clear message.

Inspiring to see how other organizations and colleagues were reporting about their events on facebook and twitter. As always our neighbours, the Swedish Consulate, did very well; this time they were wearing T-shrits with human rights slogans; a good idea for next year! Copying? I prefer to call it ‘to be inspired’.

Hashtags with #rights365 or not, 10th December as international human rights day deserves additional attention. In Ankara and Istanbul there was a series of activities and shared messages. In Istanbul we chose the topic of occupational health and the need for safer workplaces. Tragically Turkey has one of the poorest occupational safety records worldwide. Especially 2014 was traumatic, with the Soma mine disaster (301 killed) and many construction related deaths.

It was a new approach to invite our traditional MATRA and Human Rights friends alongside our business relations, to listen to  speakers from the business and science community. The speakers were from TNO, the largest applied research institute in the Netherlands, from MESS (Turkish employers’ association of metal industries) and from EnerjiSA, the no1 private electricity producer in Turkey.

Legislation is in place in Turkey, but sufficient implementation is the key challenge; for a truly safe working environment one needs committed management, strict inspection and a conscious workforce that is prepared to speak out. Easier said than done, all speakers agreed upon. Still, they were cautiously positive about the present trend in Turkey. It might, however take years to see real improvements, although the example of EnerjiSA showed that in one year the number of work related accidents can be reduced sharply.

The critical  audience asked many questions. There made references to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including some philosophical remarks that all rights boil down to one overall right, the right to live a happy and free life. Could not agree more. Will we do it again, bringing together such different groups during International Human Rights Day? Most likely we will, as it came across as a fresh and new combination, an approach strengthened by social media.

The reception afterwards had good food (as always), some music and two dancers who asked people to read some articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This led to new discussions and new ideas to promote Human Rights. #socialmediaaremoreimportantthanyouthink

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022 Christmas abroad, Christmas trees in Istanbul

Christmas shopping at IKEA Istanbul might be a dream outing for some, but it can definitely be a nightmare for others. However, Kim and I had to go, as in this largely Muslim country real Christmas trees are rather rare; I had promised ourselves a real tree this year (in a pot, do not worry) and rumor on internet had it that there were Christmas trees to be found at that oversized Swedish shop in the outskirts of Istanbul. No surprise of course as Scandinavia is home to the Christmas tree and reputations have to be upheld. And yes, there were many Christmas trees, but,…. all disappointingly made of very green and solid plastic. In a bad mood we hurried through the never ending IKEA labyrinth only to be happily surprised at the end, after the large section of beautiful plastic flowers and plants, by some real green stuff. No trees, but green bushes that vaguely could pass for a Christmas tree. It really felt full circle as these bushes were the same as I bought in 1984, during my first Christmas in Baghdad. Christmas balls and Christmas lights do not complain fortunately and Kim and I are quite happy with the result.

30 years of working for the Dutch foreign ministry implies many Christmas celebrations outside the Netherlands. I never minded it. Christmas back home was associated with stress of too many things that were expected, all in the space of a few days, a familiar discussion we all recognize. So whenever I could I stayed abroad and celebrated Christmas outside the Netherlands, but in the local context, with family, visiting friends and lonely colleagues who had stayed behind. It is impossible to say what the best Christmas celebrations were. Perhaps the ones in Latvia and Norway were the most authentic, with zillions of Christmas trees and meters of real white snow, the snow we in Holland desperately want, but only get every 30 years or so. Christmas in Jerusalem and Bethlehem I will always remember. I stayed for five years in Israel and every Christmas we tried to join the mass in Bethlehem and have dinner at the American Colony hotel; unforgettable and dear to my heart. The singing in Bethlehem was perhaps not the best, but the atmosphere more than compensated for this. Very, very special moments indeed.

And there have been other celebrations, in Oman, in my youth on Aruba; the strangest ones were those in Muslim countries, like in the 80s in Iraq, like now in Turkey because, while writing these few lines, it is sunny outside, 15 degrees and there are hardly any signs whatsoever that it is Christmas eve, except for, with thanks to globalization, in the huge shopping malls. Still there is peace in this diplomat’s heart, with the Christmas like bush in his living room and the church in the complex of the Consulate. This church has been here since 1711 and every Sunday there are three services. Tonight we join the Christmas eve mass and will sing along. As we will do again coming Saturday when the Dutch Association Istanbul will organize a Christmas concert.

Now it is time for Christmas drinks for the staff and an early departure for home. Merry Christmas and a happy new year or, as one says in Turkey, Mutlu Yillar.

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021 Innovation week Istanbul 2014/Holland partner country

What have glowing marbles, high tech eco-efficient Isa cars, fancy dresses with wearable solar design, solar tiles and every one’s favorite chocolate printers to do with Turkey? What are Daan Roosegaarde and Pauline van Dongen up to in Istanbul? What are all these colleagues from the Embassy in Ankara doing in the Consulate? Why do some of us look a bit stressed? An easy answer as it is all about economic diplomacy, high tech, innovation and public diplomacy. And many deadlines of course. Yes, the Netherlands is the official partner country of the innovation week 2014 in Istanbul from 3-6 December. During her visit in June of this year Minister Ploumen announced this welcome news. Now, less than 6 months later the time has come.

Turkey is an ambitious country with a far reaching agenda; one of the goals is to become the 10th largest economy in the world by 2023, the year that the republic of Turkey celebrates its 100th anniversary. Since 1 December 2014 Turkey is both the President of the G20, and also #17 in GDP size, more or less at the same position as the Netherlands (although we are not in the G-20, a telling sign of changing times and a changing world…).

Is it realistic for Turkey to become #10? Perhaps, but only if there will be more emphasis on economic sectors that create more added value. Textiles, chemicals, cars, distribution, tourism and construction will remain pillars of the Turkish economy, but without innovation Turkey runs the danger of become another country caught in the middle income trap. The Government sees this risk and stimulates life sciences, health tourism, space technology, innovation, creativity and high tech. R&D is at present almost 1% GDP, sharply up from 10 years ago and is scheduled to grow to 3% GDP in 2023.

The innovation week will put The Netherlands on the map in Turkey as a country with groundbreaking innovations. In Turkey, as in many other countries, it is not known that The Netherlands is a world leader from developing new technologies and materials for use in communication systems, the most economical and safest aircraft, hybrid and electric cars, large scale generation and storage of solar energy, to advanced medical detecting devices. Who in Turkey knows that the Near Field Communication (NFC) chip in the new Apple iPhone 6 and powering Apple Pay Technology is designed and built by Dutch semiconductor company NXP? Who in Turkey knows that ASML, a Dutch multinational, is the world’s leading provider of lithography machines for the semiconductor industry?

As always during innovation weeks interesting things happen. Most of all I hope that Turkey will be impressed by this unique Dutch capacity to create well-functioning public-private clusters of business, local government and universities, all working well together and applying open innovation. This has been the way forward for the Netherlands; it can also be the way forward for Turkey. In the meantime I will enjoy printed chocolate and be amazed by the vision of Daan Roosegaarde or the Dutch students of TU Delft who developed the eco-friendly car Isa.

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020 Just about/across the Bosporus

Mid November is the annual Istanbul Marathon. Its main attraction is running from Asia to Europe, across the “first” bridge, high above the Bosporus. This year I joined 10,000’s runners. After the bridge the sign “welcome to Europe” greeted us.

The Bosporus is quite a waterway: romantically beautiful, with spectacular houses and castles on its shores. Just 31 kilometers long, an average width of 3 kilometers and a depth of 65 meters. It serves 150 ships daily, going or coming to the Black Sea, for centuries better known as the Ottoman sea. Over 3 mln barrels of oil are transported every day; fortunately few accidents happen. The Treaty of Montreux of 1936 established its international waterway status, allowing the occasional Russian warship to pass by. 40-50 dolphins roam around as well, happy with the schools of fish assembling in the Bosporus and therefor easily to be trapped.

Once upon a time, till 1973… no bridges; just water, fishermen and their boats. Before, but less than 8,000 years ago, there was a land bridge and a lake.  We, living in Istanbul, are externally grateful for the rising water levels after the last ice age that created this natural divide now known as the Bosporus.

I crossed it for the first time in 1984, on my way to Baghdad. It took only a minute. I remember a strange excitement, just as one experiences when going to the North Cape, to the southernmost point of Europe or climbing the highest hill in The Netherlands (on Saba, 887 meter).

Istanbul grew from 1 million to 15 million in just 50 years and is expected to reach 25 mln in the coming decades. Ferries were no longer enough, bridges and tunnels were needed. The first bridge is still there, part of the eternal skylight of Istanbul and rather colorfully lit by Philips.

In the meantime a second bridge was built and construction is well under way of a third bridge. This will be ready in 2016 and its pylons of over 200 meters are visible from a far distance. One tunnel is already finished, for the metro, earthquake proof (Richter 9). A second one functions to transport water and a third one is underway for cars. For the time being this should do the trick, but not for long. So there will be a fourth bridge and a third tunnel that is for sure and most likely even more. Turkey is ambitious and wishes itself to develop into all kind of hubs, from energy to transport; leading to more bridges and will add pipelines.

In real estate, location is everything. Being in Istanbul you fully understand the meaning of being on the crossroads of three continents. Just as the Netherlands will always be between the ocean and its mighty Eastern neighbor and having three rivers flowing through it, so will Istanbul forever be straddling Europe and Asia, being separated by the Bosporus, but increasingly being connected. Turkey is Europe, but also much more. The bridges and tunnels reflect the progress of Istanbul and Turkey, but in a way is also the symbol of the special position of this city and this country.

[robert-schuddeboom-blog]

019 Holland Branding: The Netherlands among leaders in more than 20 economic sectors (f.e. high tech textiles)

General country branding remains important for the Dutch. In this fast changing world we, the Dutch, have to compete for attention. There are more and more upcoming economies and the assumption that others know (all about) The Netherlands might be a bit arrogant on our side. Do we really believe that the new generations of business leaders in for example China are aware of all innovations the Dutch have to offer? Or that they are still aware of the existence of far away and small country, just 0.4% the size of China?  

In Turkey, but also in previous postings like Hong Kong, I was often asked the question what the local business community thinks about The Netherlands. My first reaction is that this question should be preceded by another: "do others know anything at all about The Netherlands?" Let's face it, the possibility of us hardly being known at all is a serious matter. Not being known means running the risk of already missing the first selection round before any decision making….

After one year and countless discussions with Turkish business people I can safely say that knowledge in Turkey about the economic strength of The Netherlands is a bit shallow, definitely more than I had ever expected. When it comes to business decisions Turkey tends to think about the UK, Germany or France. Not about The Netherlands. When it comes to studying abroad, The Netherlands is unfortunately low on the list of Turkish students. Yes, there is the so called ‘tulip connection’, we are known for our soccer players and our agriculture, but that is it, more or less.

In Turkey, as in many other countries, people do not realize that The Netherlands is one of the most advanced economies in the world and that we are the world leader in over 20 smaller and bigger market niches. We are the second agricultural exporter in the world, and we also lead in many high-tech sectors like the chip producing machines by ASML or in the innovative materials by technology company TenCate.

TenCate is a Dutch company over 310 years old, from the east of The Netherlands; already before 1704 it was involved in the trade of textiles with England. For centuries it focused on textiles. In the 1980's it, as many others, went through a difficult time, but by concentrating on new products it survived thanks to its innovations.

These days it has a turnover of over 1 bln Euro annually, employs more than 4,500 people worldwide, and is a global leader in sectors like artificial grass, protective clothing for the industry and army, including the US army, advanced composites for aerospace industry and geo-synthetics for water management and infrastructure. And it has acquired the prestigious “Royal” in front of its name already in 1854.

Royal TenCate is perhaps not widely known in Turkey, but it has delivered the fibers and backing for almost 70% of all artificial grass fields in Turkey. Few know that the 120.000 m2 artificial grass between the tramway tracks in Gaziantep have been installed by using the high-grade turf of TenCate.

As we like to say at our economic section: “stay in touch with the Dutch”.

[robert-schuddeboom-blog]

018 Press and internet freedom 2014, a conference in Istanbul, looking back

Work at a Consulate focuses on consular and economic matters, but human rights have their place as well. We have our Matra and human right programs and follow what is happening in Turkey of course. An example is the 9th Internet Governance Forum. A week with many meetings and little sleep.

This year, Turkey was hosting the 9th Internet Governance Forum. It took place in Istanbul in the first week of September. I had not heard before of the Internet Governance Forum, but this under the UN auspices organized conference has been contributing for years to the further development of a safe, democratic and stable internet. This is no easy task!

Freedom of expression is essential and its defense is one of the key objectives of the Dutch human rights’ policy. So, also from this perspective, a very interesting conference, with for me many discussions, during a network event organized by Freedom House and attending a panel with EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes at Istanbul Bilgi University (“Free speech is a must for joining EU family”) to meetings with the Turkish Telecom authorities.

The organization committee of the Internet Governance Forum has always been cautious with proposals for workshops in which criticism is ventilated at the host country. The organization committee went, according to some NGO’s and academicians, this time too far. For this reason they boycotted the International Governance Forum and organized the “Ungovernance Forum”.

Internet has become the platform where existing human rights topics are being discussed in a new context and with a new twist; the free access to Twitter or Facebook has become a human right. Rules of the internet game that seem to be logic, can easily turn into censorship. And where until recently we assumed that social media could empower the population (“Arabic Spring”), it now seems that the progressing technique enables ill willing regimes to monitor their nationals at length.

Who follows Turkey is aware of the ongoing discussions on media and internet freedom. The Twitter-ban in the beginning of the year drew a lot of international attention, including that of Dutch members of Parliament. This ban was abolished after a few months by the Constitutional court after two academicians had filed a court case. These two have more cases related to closed websites.

The 2,500 participants of the 9th Internet Governance Forum came from all over the world and from many different sectors: governments, companies, politicians, technicians, scientists, civil society, youngsters and journalists. The Netherlands was well represented with a broad delegation of 33 persons. In addition there were also 20 pirates/hackers. We also welcomed our former minister of Foreign Affairs, Uri Rosenthal, participating as the Special Envoy of the Netherlands to promote the international participation to a cyberspace conference next year in the Netherlands. I met him at the airport at 03.00 AM in the morning at the airport and at 09.00 AM he was chairing his first meeting. Respect!

At the Consulate we organized for the Dutch participants a seminar on internet and press freedom in Turkey, in order to provide them with a better picture of the many, often polarized discussions in Turkey. For Special Envoy Rosenthal we organized a similar meeting at the Consulate.

Was it a useful conference? Yes, but with limited local impact as the Turkish media hardly paid any attention to the conference and it did not pay much attention to the current discussions on media and internet freedom in Turkey.

[robert-schuddeboom-blog]

017 Praise to trainees

Trainees, what could we do without them? For decades I already work with them and it has always been a pleasure; new ideas, enthusiasm and a positive attitude, characteristics of almost all trainees.

I insist that we treat trainees as regular colleagues and that they can function as such. We like to give them real responsibilities and involve them in the organization of events as it useful for them to experience how a bigger organization manages complex events.

I asked some of our trainees about their experiences.

Eva worked with the cultural section. This summer there was a great number of activities. She was, just like the other trainees, part of the practical organization of all of them; in addition she was involved in the media side of all this. Her website responsibilities were shared with Necmiye as even trainees at times do need free time. Eva has left at the beginning of September, but for her, as for many others at the Consulate, the highlight was the organization this summer of the live streaming of the world championship soccer: “it was a great success and we even had to work with waiting lists. In the end we received 4.900 guests and had to turn down 1900. I loved it. The organization, 100’s of mails per week and then the soccer evenings themselves, in the beautiful garden of the Consulate. It was very special to share these evenings with 800-900 Turkish and Dutch guests at a time. And you feel proud, as you know that this was only made possible thanks to a group effort in which the trainees played an important role”.

At the MATRA section (Social Transformation and Human Rights) much is required from a trainee. This is the only section where a trainee has to be fluent in Turkish. He/she is part of the whole project cycle, is often asked to represent the Consulate at meeting and, as with all trainees, can find him/herself involved in one of the many activities of the Consulate, from soccer to open monuments day to a book presentation. In the past months Seda worked with us and often had to act very independently: “I learned most because of the visits to projects. I went, but this was jut one of the visits, to a youth prison. I got to know the bureaucracy much better and had to communicate with children in that prison. All in all it was a very special experience.”

Yasar stayed for half a year with the economic section. Part of his time he worked on trade related issues like the preparation of the visit by Dutch Trade Minister Ploumen in June, and partly he worked with the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA), assisting Arife, the NFIA representative in Istanbul. He joined her on some fact finding missions through Turkey. Especially the first months were very busy, but also very satisfying. Yasar did very practical things, but was at times also in direct contact with CEO’s of important companies. “I really liked my stay here. It is also a fantastic feeling to receive, after hard work, personal compliments from the Minister, the Ambassador and the Consul General.”

And as all trainees, Yasar did many different things; even starring in a short film my son had to make for school….

From this summer we also have a social media trainee: Necmiye. She will stay till the end of the year and in a way is also my personal media assistant. Her job is very broad and includes bringing our social media experience and exposure to a higher level. She assists me in writing blogs, Turkish language tweets and has an almost full time job in upgrading our website. Thanks to Necmiye we started with infographics and Prezi presentations. Fortunately her assessment of me is ok: “Our Consul General is open minded and stimulates me to be creative and have new ideas, like infographics or presentations on YouTube. This makes my traineeship very challenging and rewarding. I learn a lot, also because the Consul General shares his experience with me”.

Trainees are students and have, of course, certain obligations towards study and university, which we respect, but at the same time we like them to contribute towards our professional goals.

For more information on traineeships at the Dutch Consulate General in Istanbul (info in Dutch language only):  http://istanboel.nlconsulaat.org/organization/vacatures/stages-op-het-consulaat-generaal.html

[robert-schuddeboom-blog]

016 Soccer in Turkey and Dutch business opportunities

(c.Hurriyet Daily News) Picture of the 'Cross-Continental Swimming Race. Dutch swimming legend Inge de Bruijn was in Istanbul to promote the race.   

The World Championship soccer 2014 again showed us the power of sports. Within the Dutch foreign policy sports is playing its role, recently underlined by our minister of Foreign Affairs who referred to soccer diplomacy as a tool of foreign policy. At the Dutch Consulate in Istanbul we organized live screenings of six matches, attracting almost 5.000 guests.

Within this context we organized at the Consulate a thematic luncheon on Sports in Turkey, attended by a number of experts. We also looked into the possibilities for Dutch business in the sports sector in Turkey. Thematic luncheons are organized in order to be better informed on a certain topic in Turkey.

The main conclusions.

For those who know Turkey well, it will not come as a surprise that this country does not have a sports culture as for example Scandinavia or the Netherlands have. "Mens sana in corpore sano" (a sound mind in a sound body) is not yet fully incorporated into the Turkish culture, nor is it object of a vigorous Government policy.

Sport lessons at school are limited and parents prefer additional homework hours to be spent on math than on sports. Going to sport is seen as a luxury good and demand is low, leading to high prices which in turn keeps away people who wish to do sports, but can not afford it.

Money and time should be spent on tuition to improve grades and to better prepare for the grueling examinations to enter university. These lessons are very expensive and leave most parents without money to spend on for sports.

When asked if one loves sports the answer will almost always be ‘yes’, referring in most cases to the hours spent on a couch or in a cafe, watching one of the many sports programs, not on actually doing sports :-) This situation is reflected on the top level, where Turkey is a main player in some sports only, like basketball, volleyball and wrestling, and to a lesser extent soccer.

The participants at our thematic luncheon agreed on two points: general sports culture in Turkey needs improvement and so does the climate for top sports. The participants also agreed that the overall situation in Turkey is getting better, but only very gradually and too slowly.

Istanbul’s candidacy to host the Olympics in 2020 was perhaps not without controversy, but it would have been a big boost to at least the policy and facilities for top sport. And in the longer run it would also have contributed to a better sports awareness.

Opportunities for Dutch businesses?

Everything related to healthy life style (foods, supplements, equipment for fitness, tourism related). Growing welfare in Turkey is leading to more attention for a healthy life style including fitness.

Technical cooperation on the level of coaching. In many sports the Netherlands have excellent coaches. Such cooperation would be long term investments, as we see in soccer where there is both a growing number of Dutch coaches and players in Turkey. Such cooperation would also be a long term investment in view of the Olympics (that are going to come to Istanbul one day, that is for sure).

Turkey offers great opportunities to organize special events, combining beautiful nature and cultural heritage with sportive activities. The Bosporus swimming event or the Van marathon are just two of many examples that could and should be followed by many others. All niche markets, but worthy to be explored and exploited. Such developments would be a win-win situation for all involved, for the organizers and participants and for the local economy.

[robert-schuddeboom-blog]

015 Soccer diplomacy in Istanbul

  Here we are, happy, a bit tired, five victories and 3800 guests later, 8500 bottles of Heineken consumed, 2000 Unilever ice-creams eaten, not to mention the cheese, herring,  nuts and other soccer essentials. I gave a number of interviews on radio and TV, articles have been written and each match the Consul General of the competing country was warmly welcomed.

Coming Wednesday we again will be joined by 800-900 guests, this time against old rival Argentina. Would it not be great if we manage to defeat all three countries that ever beat us in the finals (1974, 1978, 2010)? After Spain, now Argentina and in the finals Germany? Assuming of course we will beat Argentina and Germany will overcome a weakened Brazil?

Why do we do this as a diplomatic representation, why don’t we stick to regular receptions and dinners, writing cables, talking about world peace? Why do we organize these evenings at the Dutch Consulate and spend serious resources in order to make it all possible? Well, it is not out of personal love for soccer (which we do by the way), but because soccer gives us in Istanbul, as part of the diplomatic Dutch network in Turkey, a unique opportunity to brand our country, to pay tribute to our network in Turkey, to please potential investors to the Netherlands and to extend our friendship to the large, mostly business related Dutch community of 6.000 in Istanbul.

Minister Timmermans calls this soccer diplomacy, serving the Dutch interests abroad through public diplomacy and networking, using soccer as instrument. Because, although all is soccer related, it is not about soccer of course. Soccer is just a means towards an end. It is about my country, that has to work hard to maintain its welfare capabilities and its international economic competing power. The world is changing rapidly, centers of power are shifting and for a country like the Netherlands remaining on the radar is already a prime challenge. In addition our soccer diplomacy in Istanbul is also about the relations with Turkey, a country that for a large number of reasons is very important for the future of the Netherlands.

My staff and I receive many groups and delegations from the Netherlands. One question is always on the table “what does Turkey (or China, ref my previous posting) think about the Netherlands?”; my standard reaction is that this question should be preceded by another one “Do Turkey/China/India/Brazil still know that there is a country called the Netherlands”? And believe me, this is not a hypothetical question. In China alone every year 10 mln graduate from university. They are the future leaders and decision makers. Do you in all sincerity think that these young Chinese are aware of us? Well, they do not. When Chinese students wish to study abroad (and the Netherlands wishes to attract foreign talent) they think of the US and the UK followed by Japan, South-Korea, Canada and Australia, then by Germany and France. Only in the next and last group Sweden, Spain or the Netherlands are taken into possible consideration.

This university example is just one out of many; without being overly pessimistic I am convinced that we have to realize that without additional efforts the brand name of the Netherlands is slowly eroding and being forgotten. Soccer appears, together with tulips and agriculture, the one thing all on this planet know about of the Netherlands. So when there is a World Soccer Championship it presents us with a great opportunity to let the world know that there is a country called the Netherlands and that the Netherlands is a good partner in business, sports and friendship. The way how we play soccer, the way how our coach Louis van Gaal is different from other coaches made us link our soccer reputation with other aspects of our country. As a slogan we came up with ‘Holland=soccer=innovation’. In a way this does not mean anything, but at the same time it says it all. A huge banner with this text is attached to our Consulate and it is very often photographed from the Istiklal, a famous shopping street that sees on an average day 1 mln people.

Whom do we invite? Is it only for Dutch people? No, Dutch are of course very welcome, but we especially invited the Turkish network of our Consulate, putting emphasis on potential investors to the Netherlands, our sponsors were allowed to invite a number of their contacts, we invited alumni of Dutch universities and through Facebook we also opened up for the Dutch/Turkish community, reserving for them a few hundreds slots per match. On average, from the 800 guests per event, about 60% was from our network in Turkey and sponsors and 40% was Dutch, many with strong Turkish roots. All were orange of course and for me, as a guest in this country, it was amazing to see that our Turkish friends were the most fanatic. Unfortunately the capacity of the Consulate is limited, because each match we had a few hundred on the waiting list.

Money. Always important. Tax payers and so. Although in my opinion this is important enough to have public funding for these type of events, most of it is being financed by sponsors. A letter to 10 companies with a request to support us with 1000 euro per match was positively answered by 8 of them within a few hours, showing that these companies realize the importance of soccer diplomacy. They are more than willing to pay. And, as one CEO said “the more I spend on this the better, as it also means that we continue on our road to become World Champion Soccer”.

The one drawback? After all these events we need new grass in the garden of the Consulate