Turkey pledges TRY 1 million for SMEs

Turkiye

The Turkish Presidency of the Organization for the Development of Small and Medium-sized Industry (KOSGEB) has invited small and medium-sized enterprises (“SME”) to participate in the SME support and development program.

The main objective of the program is to strengthen the competitiveness and added value of SMEs by improving their impact on the economy through the subsidisation of projects developed by SMEs (provided that the projects serve the purposes defined by KOSGEB).

The concept for the program is "digitization of the manufacturing industry" to provide incentives for SMEs to digitize and develop technology. Efforts supported under the program include

  • big data processing in analytical methods and manufacturing;
  • internet of things in manufacturing;
  • industrial robot technologies in manufacturing;
  • intelligent sensor technologies in manufacturing;
  • cyber-physical intelligent factory systems and components based on artificial intelligence;
  • cyber security in manufacturing;
  • intelligent and flexible automation systems in manufacturing; and
  • augmented reality or virtual reality technologies in manufacturing.

With regard to the provision of financial grants, KOSGEB can provide financial support of up to TRY 1 million, provided the amount does not exceed 60% of the total project costs. The support covers expenses for personnel (up to TRY 90,000 in total for a maximum of four staff members assigned to the project team), equipment, software and services (including TRY 200,000 for educational consultancy). Qualifying SMEs will be required to repay part of the grant up to a maximum of TRY 700,000 over a period of eight (8) to twenty (20) months.

In addition to the program, KOSGEB offers SMEs other mechanisms, including support for entrepreneurship, R&D, technological production, domestication, business development, growth, internationalisation, SME financing and laboratory work.

For more information about the program and other SME support mechanisms, please contact your CMS consultant or local CMS experts: Dr. Döne Yalçın or Sinan Abra.