İTO President Avdagiç: "Integrating climate targets with production policies will provide economic gain"

Avdagiç made a statement to the AA correspondent regarding the 31st Conference of the Parties (COP31) of the United Nations (UN) Framework Convention on Climate Change, held in Antalya, hosted by Türkiye.

Emphasizing that emission reduction, clean energy transformation and climate finance issues were discussed at the highest level in line with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees at the Climate Summit COP31, Avdagiç stated that Türkiye put forward its "Implementation COP" vision at this point.

Avdagiç noted that Türkiye's net zero emission target set for 2053 and its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 41 percent compared to the reference scenario by 2030 constitute the backbone of this vision, adding, "These targets also provide a framework that will attract international investment to our country." he said.

Stating that Türkiye is among the actors that provide solutions to the climate problem by hosting the Climate Summit COP31, Avdagiç said:

"Our country has shown that it not only adapts to climate regulations but also has the capacity to contribute to the formation of the regional agenda. In addition, the fact that the summit brings together the topics of energy, finance, trade, industry and technology on the same platform shows that green transformation creates new investment and export areas. However, international visibility alone does not provide economic gain. It is of great importance for Türkiye to develop investable projects, access to finance, technical expertise and inter-institutional coordination capacity."

"For the first time, the annual average air temperature rose 1.5 degrees above the pre-industrial level."

Şekib Avdagiç reminded that negotiations were held and decisions were made regarding the future of the earth at the Conference of the Parties, the highest decision-making body of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and said that efforts were being made to turn global climate commitments into concrete action.

Stating that the summit was organized to eliminate a situation that would darken the future of humanity, Avdagiç concluded his words as follows:

"For example, 2024 was the hottest year on record. The annual average air temperature rose 1.5 degrees above the pre-industrial period for the first time. In 2023, this threshold was exceeded in approximately half of the days. Extreme heat, droughts, forest fires, floods and storms follow each other. In 2025, there was an economic loss of 210 billion dollars in the world due to extreme weather events. I believe that the integration of climate targets with production policies will ensure that COP31 will have a permanent economic impact on behalf of our country. "As the Turkish private sector, we all have a great responsibility in this regard. It is important for us to turn this wind to our advantage. We thank our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for hosting the summit and for leading the process. I congratulate our Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Mr. Murat Kurum, and everyone who contributed."