Young MÜSİAD Chair Mağsum Usta calls for higher value added in Türkiye’s production

Young MÜSİAD Chair Mağsum Usta said they were prioritizing foreign trade, commercial diplomacy and technological capabilities in their 2026 activities. Usta said Türkiye’s production capacity should be supported by higher value added and strong international partnerships.

Young MÜSİAD Chair Mağsum Usta said they were prioritizing knowledge of foreign trade, an understanding of commercial diplomacy and technological capabilities in their 2026 activities. Usta said young people who follow developments around the world and can apply them to business are an important asset for Türkiye’s competitiveness.

Usta said they aimed to encourage young people to take on greater responsibility in business and contribute to Türkiye’s production capacity, emphasizing that their work was not limited to organizing events. He said they sought to create opportunities for young people to develop their ideas, meet the right people and apply what they learned in business.

Emphasis on production and international cooperation

Usta said they had prepared programs ranging from education and foreign trade to entrepreneurship and artificial intelligence. He said transforming Türkiye’s young population into economic strength was possible by trusting young people and investing in their development.

Usta said geopolitical tensions, uncertainty in trade and technological transformation were affecting the global economy at the same time, adding that fluctuations in energy and logistics costs were influencing businesses’ plans. He said artificial intelligence was also changing the competitive environment, from production to services.

Usta said young businesspeople needed to reach different markets, manage their costs effectively and adapt new technologies to their businesses. He added that supporting Türkiye’s production capacity with higher value added and strong international cooperation was a priority for them.

Education and entrepreneurship programs

Usta said they had brought young people together with experienced figures from the business world at Galatasaray University as part of the Young Business Academy 2026. He said the program addressed leadership, management and entrepreneurship through practical examples.

Galatasaray University (archive)

Usta said the entrepreneurship academy organized in cooperation with Istanbul Medipol University’s Digital Business Club offered content on sales, marketing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and the entrepreneurship ecosystem. He said it was important for young people to hear directly from experienced professionals about businesses’ decision-making and adaptation processes.

Usta said the ninth International Young Businesspeople’s Congress was held under the name UGİK 2026 with the theme “Future: Today.” He said the congress addressed decisions that needed to be made today while preparing for the business world of the future. He added that bringing together businesspeople from different generations and experts from various fields enabled young people to assess developments beyond their own sectors.

Commercial diplomacy and export initiatives

Usta said they had launched the Commercial Diplomacy Workshop to help young people understand the institutional and diplomatic dimensions of international trade. He said the training sessions hosted by Boğaziçi University were supported by institutional visits, adding that businesspeople seeking to enter a market also needed to understand its rules and decision-making processes.

Usta said contacts had been held with European institutions and Türkiye’s international missions during the Brussels leg of the workshop. He said the initiative enabled participants to assess on site how relations between Türkiye and Europe were reflected in trade.

Usta said the 12th term of the Young Trade Envoys program focused on combining foreign trade knowledge with practical experience. He said the program addressed market research, finding customers, sales, negotiation and logistics, aiming to help young people understand the interconnected stages of exporting and develop the skills needed to build commercial relationships.

Boğaziçi University South Campus (archive)

Support for startups and the use of artificial intelligence

Usta said acceleration efforts at the Young MÜSİAD Entrepreneurship Center GM2 focused on startups’ needs to take their products to market and grow their businesses. He said the program carried out in cooperation with Teknopark Istanbul and Demo Day enabled startups to present their projects, connect with the business community and undergo evaluation by investors.

Usta stressed that a startup’s success depended not only on the quality of its idea but also on its ability to reach customers and establish a sustainable business model. He said they aimed for their entrepreneurship initiatives to address these needs.

Usta said the AI4Agent event, held as part of the AI4Business series, examined how artificial intelligence agents could be used in business processes and how companies could prepare for this transformation. He said they wanted young businesspeople to assess artificial intelligence through concrete needs in their own businesses.

Usta said developing human resources capable of using technology effectively was as important as access to technology. He said their initiatives aimed to improve young people’s technology literacy and enable them to contribute more consciously to the transformation of their businesses.

Usta said young people’s ability to use technology needed to advance alongside their capacity to develop solutions. He said they assessed the success of their programs through outcomes such as a young person making a career decision, developing a business idea, gaining the skills to meet with a new customer or leading an improvement at their company.

Usta said the common aim of their 2026 activities was to expand the areas in which young people could realize their potential. He said it was important for more young entrepreneurs, exporters and responsible managers to contribute to Türkiye’s production, employment and prosperity.