Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek made statements about Türkiye's economic targets for the next period. Stating that reducing inflation to single digits is the most important priority, Şimşek stated that fiscal discipline will be maintained, an economic structure with a current account surplus is targeted and improvement in income distribution is important. Şimşek also stated that with the Terror-Free Türkiye process, Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia regions can become Türkiye's new growth engine.
The panel titled "AK Party on the 25th Anniversary of its Establishment and 24th Year of Coming to Power", organized in cooperation with the AK Party Culture and Art Policies Directorate and the AK Party Organization Directorate, was held at the party's headquarters building.
In addition to the Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek, AK Party Deputy Chairman Efkan Ala and Mustafa Elitaş, AK Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik, AK Party Deputy Chairman Ahmet Büyükgümüş and Hüseyin Yayman attended the program. The panel evaluated the AK Party's 24-year period in power and its goals for the next period.
PRIORITY IN THE ECONOMY IS SINGLE-DIGITAL INFLATION
Making evaluations regarding Türkiye's future economic policies, Minister Şimşek emphasized that the main goal is to reduce inflation to single digits.
Şimşek said, "Our priority in the economy is single-digit inflation. In fact, we reduced inflation to single digits in the early 2000s and kept it there for a long time. But then it increased to double digits and now it is in a downward trend again. Decreasing inflation to single digits means access to long-term credit. It means more investment, production and competitiveness, but single-digit inflation also means more equitable income distribution because inflation hits fixed income earners the most."
Stating that fiscal discipline will be maintained, Şimşek said that fiscal discipline played an important role behind Türkiye's past economic successes.
TARGET IS Türkiye, WITH A CURRENT ACCOUNT SURPLUS
Reminding that Türkiye has been running a current account deficit for a long time, Minister Şimşek stated that they aim to reach an economic structure that gives a current account surplus in the coming period.
Şimşek said, "Turkey has been running a current account deficit for a long time. Turkey wants to have a current account surplus by producing mostly domestic oil and natural gas, renewable energy, high added value in industry and large service exports. This involves a serious structural transformation, but we believe that the AK Party can achieve this under the leadership of our President."
Stating that ensuring justice in income distribution is one of the important topics of economic policies, Şimşek emphasized that tax policies play a critical role in this process.
Şimşek said, "You can grow fast, but fair distribution of income is one of the most critical issues. Here, tax policies and ensuring justice in taxes are very important, but the most critical variable is that inflation drops to single digits."
Touching on Türkiye's technological transformation goals, Şimşek said that past industrial revolutions were missed, but there is a strong road map to catch up with developed countries in the field of artificial intelligence. He stated that Türkiye is above similar countries in the artificial intelligence readiness index.
NEW GROWTH TARGET FOR EASTERN AND SOUTHEAST ANATOLIA
Drawing attention to the economic effects of the terrorism-free Türkiye process, Minister Şimşek said that the economic cost of the fight against terrorism to Türkiye is between 2 and 2.3 trillion dollars, according to some estimates.
Şimşek said, "What would Türkiye be like if it spent 2.3 trillion dollars on development and R&D instead of fighting terrorism? We are at that threshold now."
Pointing to the young population advantage of Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia, Şimşek stated that the regions can play a greater role in economic growth.
Minister Şimşek said, "The median age in Southeastern Anatolia is around 26, the average in Turkey is 35, and the European average is 45. These regions are young, we brought infrastructure to these regions, established universities and opened schools. We provide very generous incentives, but the private sector did not show enough demand for this region. From now on, during the AK Party governments, these regions can become Türkiye's new growth engine."
EVALUATED Türkiye'S GROWTH PERFORMANCE
Stating that Türkiye grew faster during the AK Party governments under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Şimşek said that the average real growth rate between 1923 and 2002 was 4.7 percent, and this rate increased to 5.3 percent during the AK Party governments.
Stating that Türkiye has risen to the 16th place among the world economies and the national income per capita has increased to 18 thousand dollars, Şimşek stated that this performance is a significant success compared to previous periods, similar countries and the growth rate of the world economy.
FUTURE MESSAGES FROM AK PARTY EXECUTIVES
Speaking at the panel, AK Party Deputy Chairman Efkan Ala stated that Türkiye has experienced important transformations in the field of management system, defense industry and democratic reforms. Ala said that the Turkish Armed Forces have become stronger and Türkiye has become one of the important exporting countries in the defense industry.
AK Party Deputy Chairman Mustafa Elitaş made evaluations about the upcoming elections and stated that the organizations should work intensively for the 29th term elections. Elitaş called for preparations for the elections to be held by May 7, 2028, with the excitement of the first day.
AK Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik drew attention to the importance of democratic transformation and political stability in Türkiye. Emphasizing that Ankara is the center of decision-making in foreign policy, Çelik said that stability in Syria and Iraq is also important for Türkiye's security.
AK Party Deputy Chairman Ahmet Büyükgümüş stated that the most important test of political movements is their moral values and that they aim to make the transformation in Türkiye permanent with a new constitution.
AK Party Deputy Chairman Hüseyin Yayman stated that there have been significant changes in Türkiye's understanding of state administration and politics under the leadership of President Erdoğan and that the country has become one of the global powers.
