Despotovski: Macedonia is a stable country with hard workers

Despotovski: Macedonia is a stable country with hard workers

A positive business climate for investment, fast and efficient procedures and procedures for the realization of investments, as well as access to qualified labor are crucial for Turkish investors in the country. The managers of the Turkish company Purplast and the new investor in TIDZ, the Shahterm company, shared their positive experience of investing in TIDZ in front of more than 30 Turkish companies. At the event organized by the Chamber of Commerce of Bursa, the director of TIDZ, Jovan Despotovski, presented investment opportunities in N. Macedonia as well as the opportunities for Turkish companies, and the Macedonian ambassador to Turkey, Jovan Manasievski, as well as Junayt Šener, vice president of the board, had their address. of directors of the Chamber of Commerce of Bursa.

“Macedonia has a key geographical position. We offer flexibility, excellent infrastructure and a skilled workforce. What is even more important is that we managed to change the image from a country of cheap labor to a country of well-paid jobs for our fellow citizens. So not only is the number of employees in the Zones continuously growing, but also the average net salary has already reached over 1100 euros. Macedonia is a stable country with hard workers. We also showed that Macedonia is a real business destination considering that in the past three years we have reached contracts of 1 billion euros, which is the same as the investment volume for ten years, “said Jovan Despotovski, director of TIDZ. He also added that “Turkey is growing into a serious business partner of the country, and in TIDZ alone in the last three years we have three new Turkish companies that are investing over 125 million euros and predict the opening of over 1200 new jobs, some of which are already being implemented.”

The general manager of the Shahterm company, Faruk Shahin, whose company is the newest investor in TIDZ, indicated that the most important thing for the investment decision was the professionalism and efficiency of the Government and TIDZ in the negotiations.

“Extremely fast process and commitment that resulted in a contract after only four months. In Macedonia, we found real partners and efficient administration, which was crucial for us as businessmen, because time costs money. What particularly pleases us is that there is enough qualified staff in the country that we are ready to pay well,” Sahin emphasized. He added that the starting salary for unqualified staff will start from 550 euros, and he added that he plans to make the new factory in TIDZ Skopje 2 a supply center for customers in Western countries, from Europe and the USA. The Shahterm company, which has more than 40 years of experience in the design and production of heating systems for white goods and household appliances, will invest over 100 million euros and plans to create 1,000 new jobs. At the moment, “Shahterm” is part of the leading five companies in this activity globally, with more than half of the annual production intended for markets outside Turkey. The list of clients is made up of famous world manufacturers of white goods and household appliances such as “Whirlpool”, “Amika”, “Gorenje”, “Beko” and “Candy”.

Mehmed Sishmanoglu, the executive director of Purplast, which has 40 years of experience in the automotive industry, indicated that with the support of the Government and cooperation with TIDZ, they have been building a success story in the country for three years. Junayt Shaner, vice president of the board of directors of the Bursa Chamber of Commerce, emphasized that such networking events are important for Turkish investors, and that they will support Turkish companies in their venture into the Macedonian market. He added that according to the positive experiences of Turkish companies, he especially believes in the potential of N. Macedonia as a strategic investment destination.

In his address, the Macedonian ambassador to Turkey, Jovan Manasievski, emphasized that the Republic of Turkey as our strategic partner is a very important investor in various infrastructure and capital investments, as well as greenfield and brownfield investments by Turkish companies, which have recognized the potential and use the advantages and benefits from doing business in N. Macedonia.

Company representatives were mostly interested in access to skilled labor, elements of state support and investment conditions. Otherwise, Turkey ranks first in terms of the number of foreign companies in the country, and currently almost 2,000 Turkish companies are registered and operating in various sectors.