Client:
The Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands
Location:
Port of Izmir, Turkey
Activities:
- analysis of the existing situation in Turkish ports, in particular the port of Izmir
- organisation of working groups on institutional issues, finance, terminal operations and legal and labour issues
- recommendations and implementation plan
Market position and maritime safety
As part of different programmes to assist European Union (EU) candidate member states in meeting the criteria for EU-membership, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs had pre-accession programmes. This project was aimed at the impact of the implementation of EU regulations on the operations of the port of Izmir. This port was run by the Turkish State Railways. The goal of the project was to strengthen the institutional and management structure of the port of Izmir on market position and maritime safety.
Identifying bottlenecks
The experts of APC started with an analysis of the existing situation in Turkish ports. This analysis identified a number of bottlenecks, including an out-dated port management system. This led to the ports of Turkey being bypassed via long distance trucking. This presented a sub-optimal situation, where the Turkish economy did not reap the full benefits of its potential.
Creating support and implementation plan
APC’s vast experience shows that the implementation of recommendations aiming to solve these bottlenecks, as well as the implementation of the EU regulations, hinges for a large part on acceptance of and believe in these changes by the various stakeholders. By organising working groups on numerous subjects, APC was able to create support for the recommendations that were to be implemented by the Turkish State Railways. The detailed implementation plan by APC specified the steps that needed to be taken to bring the institutional and management structure of the port of Izmir in line with the wishes of the EU.
