Building Markets’ research shows that refugee-owned small businesses create jobs, livelihoods, and independence not only for themselves, but for their Turkish neighbors as well. We have published more than a dozen reports on our findings, and have synthesized our data into a new brief for public, private, and development partners that will be presented in Gaziantep, Ankara, and Istanbul in August 2022.
Türkiye has four million refugees and asylum seekers, of whom 3.6M (90%) are Syrian. Over the last decade, Syrians have become more integrated into economic life as consumers, job seekers, employees, and entrepreneurs. By 2020, it is estimated that Syrians had invested more than US $500M in capital into the country through the establishment of commercial activities. As Building Markets’ research has found, Syrians have brought their entrepreneurial skills and capital to Türkiye, starting the vast majority of the 2,776 SMEs in our network.
Through our research we have found that:
Syrian SMEs have advantages (e.g., multiple languages, international networks, export capacity) and are also faced with unique disadvantages (e.g., lack of local market experience, unfamiliarity with regulations, and low technology use) that affect their competitiveness in the Turkish market and attractiveness as partners to Turkish companies. Syrian-owned companies also faced additional challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, given that their competitive disadvantages were amplified. This included a lack of available capital, information gaps, and language barriers that limited access to support programs, trade and supply chain disruptions, and lack of digital capacity in their operational models.
At a time when Türkiye is facing significant economic difficulties, addressing challenges faced by these entrepreneurs and businesses can boost job creation. Building Markets recommends the following actions by public, private, and development partners to support further integration of refugee businesses into the Turkish commercial ecosystem and society, enhancing their economic contributions:
IDENTIFY AND ADDRESS GAPS IN THE POLICY & REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT
The public sector should:
MARKET ACCESS AND INTEGRATION
Civil society organizations and business associations should:
The private sector should:
ACCESS TO CAPITAL
Private and public sector stakeholders should:
Financiers should:
Civil society organizations and business associations should:
CONTRIBUTE TO THE EVIDENCE BASE TO SUPPORT SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
Download the brief: The Positive Economic Contributions of Refugees in Türkiye in ARABIC, ENGLISH, TURKISH