The middle-income trap, productivity, inflation, exchange rates, incentives, and industrial policies are among the issues discussed in the second chapter. The conversation addresses the visionary decisions that need to be made in light of worldwide developments in order to ensure Turkey’s sustainable growth and business success.
In his analysis, Bülent Eczacıbaşı focuses on the basic conditions for socio-economic development and the importance of the investment environment. He also offers his ideas about what Turkey's new “story” should include.
After finishing at Ankara College Foundation High School and receiving a BA from Bilkent University, as well as an MA and PhD from Princeton, all in economics, Refet Gürkaynak is Professor of Economics and department chair at Bilkent University. He is also a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) in London, Centre for Financial Studies (CFS) in Frankfurt, CESIfo in Munich, and the Bilim Akademisi (Science Academy). Gürkaynak was previously an economist at the Monetary Affairs Division of the Federal Reserve Board and served as visiting lecturer at MIT. His research interests cover monetary policy, financial markets, and the macro-economy in general, and his contributions have been published in leading international journals. He has served as advisor to the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey and the European Central Bank and is the recipient of awards from the Turkish Academy of Sciences, TÜBİTAK, the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, and the European Central Bank.
An economist with a BA from Boğaziçi University and a PhD from Boston College, Murat Üçer is the Turkey Country Analyst for Global Source Partners, co-founder of the Turkey Data Monitor, and a part-time faculty member at Koç University. As a consultant, he provides macroeconomic expertise to financial institutions, multinational corporations, and public sector organizations, and he gives seminars on macroeconomic developments in Turkey and the world. He has previously worked as an economist at the Institute of International Finance, Credit Suisse, and the International Monetary Fund, and he has held senior advisory roles for a number of institutions, including the Turkish Treasury in 2001 and the Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey in 1997. Author of numerous articles on the Turkish economy, Üçer has also published a book on the 2001 crisis in Turkey.