Turkey's Gaziantep rebounds after Syria war and earthquake

DW (English)

Turkey sees major economic opportunities in postwar Syria, with the city of Gaziantep poised to benefit most. The end of the Syrian war and eased sanctions could revive trade routes and spark a reconstruction boom.

Transcript

00:00For Turkey's industrial city of Gaziantep, it's been a tough decade.

00:07With Syria just 50 kilometers away, the civil war closed one of the city's most lucrative markets.

00:13Economic pain compounded by the 2023 earthquake.

00:18But Sully Balta, CEO of TUT Global, whose company's interests span from sweep-making to construction to medical supplies,

00:27believes the end of Syria's civil war could open a new chapter for Gaziantep businesses.

00:34The momentum is gaining traction in Syria.

00:37For Gaziantep, historically, our neighboring cities were the most valuable export partners in this region.

00:42Therefore, we can say that for Gaziantep, Syria is closer to us than our Turkish neighboring provinces.

00:48For instance, we can reach the center of Aleppo within an hour or an hour and a half.

00:52Balta, who studied at Damascus University, is now a regular visitor to Syria,

00:58leading Gaziantep's drive back into the Syrian market.

01:02He says Syria is moving to embrace a free market and international investors,

01:07allowing 100 percent foreign ownership of companies and land, along with binding legal arbitration.

01:15Last month saw the first international transfer of funds using the SWIFT system since Syria's readmittance.

01:24Balta's company, with a Syrian partner, is constructing and furnishing 10,000 housing units,

01:31drawing on the expertise from the rebuilding of Gaziantep after the devastating 2023 earthquakes in Turkey.

01:40The number of Syrians returning is accelerating.

01:43The most pressing need in this return process is shelter.

01:46The Syrian authorities contacted us to utilize Turkey's experience in fast-action engineering and construction.

01:51At this point, we're organizing a large-scale effort to bring together successful representatives of the construction sector,

01:58who served in the earthquake zone with people in Syria.

02:01Our goal is to pioneer rapid construction for housing in a similar way in that region.

02:07Gaziantep's large haulage industry is also seeing peace dividends.

02:12Syria, before the civil war, was not only a market in itself for Turkish goods,

02:17but also a transit route to the lucrative Gulf states.

02:21The return of the valuable trade was boosted by the new Syrian regime,

02:26allowing Turkish drivers to get transit visas at the Syrian border.

02:32In the past, the transportation sector, particularly in Gaziantep, relied heavily on shipments to the Middle East.

02:38However, the Gulf crisis and the wars in Iraq and Syria have led to a stagnant period in the transportation business.

02:44But of course, with the establishment of a new government in Syria, both the volume of business and its potential for haulage are increasing.

02:51We plan to increase volume from now on. We have such hope.

02:55With peace, Syrian refugees in Turkey are starting to return.

03:00According to authorities, around 80,000 have already left Gaziantep, a fifth of those who found refuge in the city.

03:08But for many companies in Gaziantep's industrial zone, this poses a problem.

03:14Halil Yarbay, the owner of Inja Boya Paint Company, says that with many Turks reluctant to endure the long hours and difficult conditions,

03:24Syrians have become vital to companies like his, and the economic impact of their return is being already felt.

03:33If we ask about the percentage of Syrians currently employed here, the response would be somewhere in the range of 50%, 70%, or even 100%.

03:42Look, in some workshops, almost 100% are Syrians.

03:46Whether to stay or return is very much on the minds of the Syrian workers.

03:52Ahmed Haj Hussein has been working at this workshop for eight years, and his son, Ibrahim, started last year.

04:00They have different aspirations for the future.

04:04I lived in Aleppo for 35 years. I have so many friends I haven't seen for 14 years.

04:10I have three sisters there, and I didn't see them either.

04:14We can go, but I don't have a house in Aleppo.

04:17You need to have money to pay the monthly rent. You need a job, but there is no work.

04:21My brother went back to Aleppo, but he says business is still low.

04:25He's been waiting for the last four to five months to see if things would work out.

04:30I grew up here. This is my second homeland, and I love it very much.

04:34Yarbay believes economic and security uncertainties in Syria means most of his workers will at least for now stay.

04:44But Baltar believes that if peace and stability continue in Syria, many Gaziantep companies will follow their returning workers into Syria.

04:55It is logistically very close to Gaziantep, and it offers an opportunity to both produce and export at a cost that can be reduced by up to 35%.

05:04We don't see Syria as just Syria. Syria is also a member of the Arab League.

05:09Under the Free Trade Agreement with 17 Arab countries, that means that all production in Syria can be exported tax-free to all of them.

05:17For us, the Gulf countries are a very important market.

05:21For Gaziantep and its businesses, their fortunes look said to be increasingly entwined with those of its Syrian neighbour,

05:29and its struggle for stability and prosperity.

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