Turkish farmers and chambers of agriculture marked World Farmers’ Day by discussing the problems Turkish farmers and agriculture face as well as possible solutions.
Turkey is one of the few countries in the world that is self-sufficient in terms of food. The country’s fertile soil, access to sufficient water, suitable climate and hardworking farmers all make for a successful agricultural sector. Historically, the agricultural sector has been Turkey’s largest employer and a major contributor to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), although its share of the economy has fallen consistently over several decades. According to a sector report issued by UK Trade & Investment — a UK government organization that helps UK companies succeed in international markets — the share of agriculture in Turkey’s GDP has declined from 21 percent to 12 percent since 1983, and the country’s agricultural workforce, as a share of total employment, is also in gradual decline, falling from 35 percent in 2001 to 30 percent in 2007. The president of the Turkish Union of Agricultural Chambers (TZOB), Şemsi Bayraktar, and representatives of chambers of agriculture visited Anıtkabir, Atatürk’s mausoleum, on the occasion of Farmers’ Day.
Signing the official Anıtkabir memorial book at Misak-ı Milli (National Pact) Tower, Bayraktar wrote that chambers of agriculture are aware that being self-sufficient in terms of food has a strategic importance and they will keep producing more.
Stating that the agricultural sector had embraced the unemployed in this atmosphere of crisis, he complained about the lack of attention paid to agriculture in Turkey.
Turkish Agriculture Credit Cooperatives Central Union (TTKKMB) Chairman İlhami Teke said the agriculture sector should meet European Union standards. Stating that the sector should be able to produce with lower costs and higher productivity, he said more importance should be attached to research and development and higher productivity should be attained by utilizing advances in technology, increasing irrigable lands and instituting applied training programs for farmers.
Stating that the significance of agriculture has increased during the current global financial crisis, Bursa Chamber of Agriculture Chairman Fuat Sarı said the population engaged in agriculture had decreased considerably in the last decade. Noting that the agrarian population has declined to 27 percent from 35 percent in 2008, he said these people were forced to migrate to big cities. “Our country is not a very rich one. Unfortunately, we consume some of our money by importing agricultural products. So, the economy comes to a deadlock,” Sarı said.
Agricultural product export increased, while import decreased
In the meantime, Agriculture Minister Mehdi Eker delivered a speech at Parliament yesterday, and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) deputy Muharrem Varlı took the floor on the occasion of Farmers’ Day. Varlı noted that the direct income support provided for farmers had been abolished and the diesel fuel support provided for them does not meet one-third of the taxes charged on diesel fuel. Responding to Varlı, Minister Eker said the support lent to the agriculture sector amounted to TL 1.806 billion and this amount has now increased to TL 5.876 billion. Noting that the yearly income per capita of those engaging in agriculture has increased to $3,188 from $1,000 in 2002, Eker said, “The agricultural product export of Turkey has increased to $11.4 billion, while the agricultural product import has declined to $8.5 billion from $10.7 billion.”
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also issued a message on the occasion of Farmers’ Day. In celebrating Farmers’ Day, he said, everyone — including state institutions — should cooperate and work more effectively to find solutions to the problems of farmers and the Turkish agricultural sector. Stating that World Farmers’ Day is a good opportunity to evaluate how efficiently Turkey is making use of its agricultural potential, Erdoğan said his government had been working to bring permanent solutions to problems that Turkish agriculture experiences, such as infertility in production and the low level of income farmers make.
Agricultural Biodiversity 