13 January 2012

Mauritius-Turkey conclude talks on a Trade and Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement

Mauritius and Turkey yesterday concluded discussions on a Framework Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation. The Agreement will be signed at the end of February 2012 in Mauritius during the visit of the Turkish Minister of Economy, Mr. Caglayan.

The Framework Agreement will provide an appropriate platform to bolster trade between Mauritius and Turkey. The Framework text is an umbrella agreement which will allow cooperation and trade in various areas such as agriculture, fisheries, textiles, services including tourism, SME development as well as promote a higher degree of interaction between private businessmen of both countries through joint ventures and trade promotion activities.

The Turkish delegation was led by Mr Hakan Karabalik, Head of Department of the Ministry of Economy. The Mauritian side was headed by the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mr Anand Neewoor.

In his closing remarks, the Secretary for Foreign Affairs said that the successful outcome of the talks mark another milestone in Mauritius-Turkey’s maturing trade relationship, opening up the possibility of a gradual network of Memorandum of Understandings or agreements that can be envisaged in different sectors. According to Mr Neewoor, the Framework Agreement is designed in a way which will offer both an individual and collective economic boost, and allow businesses to draw on the benefits of the Mauritius-Turkey Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed in September 2011.

For his part, Mr Karabalik, noted that concluding the Framework Agreement is the second step that has been taken after the signature of the FTA and this has been done rapidly. Mauritius is the first country in sub-Saharan Africa with which Turkey has signed an FTA and due to this fact Turkey attaches great importance to this FTA, he said. ‘For sure in our experience, it will help to boost trade and economic relations as well as investments between both countries’, Mr Karabalik stressed.

It is recalled that Mauritius and Turkey signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in September 2011 and the Framework Agreement concluded will provide the necessary platform to tap the benefits of the FTA once it enters into force.

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