Announcement of Turkey to Assist Manufacturing Sector on January 9, 1986

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A.• Telephone: (202) 477-1234 BANK NEWS RELEASE NO. 86/46 Contact: Fawzi H. Rihane January 9, 1986 (202) 477-5325 TURKEY TO ASSIST MANUFACTURING SECTOR Turkey will launch a project that will help develop efficient labor-intensive industries, particularly small-scale businesses. The World Bank has approved a loan of $100 million for the project which is in support of the government's economic adjustment program. The objectives of the project are to create productive jobs at relatively lower cost and contribute to increased exports of manufactured goods. About 18,000 new jobs are expected to be generated by subprojects which will be financed under the project. To provide loans and efficient financial services to such businesses, lines of credit amounting to $80 million and $18.4 million will be made available to Sinai Yatirim ve Kredi Bankasi (SYKB) and Halk Bankasi, respectively. Technical assistance will be provided to Halk Bankasi to strengthen and improve its operations. SYKB is a privately owned development bank and Halk Bankasi, a state economic enterprise, is the principal source of loans to small businesses. The World Bank loan will include an allocation of $1.25 million to the Small Industry Development Organization, a government agency, to finance technical assistance to small and medium enterprises. The World Bank loan is for 15 years, including three years of grace, with a variable interest rate, currently 8.5 percent, linked to the cost of the Bank's borrowings. It also carries an annual commitment charge of 0.75 percent on undisbursed balances. NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents.