About Us

SOUTHEAST ANATOLIAN EXPORTERS’ ASSOCIATIONS            

Exporters' associations are indispensable for the national economy as organizations under the umbrella of the Türkiye Exporters Assembly (TİM), where exporters come together on a sectoral and/or regional basis.

The Southeast Anatolian Exporters' Associations (GAIB) was formed by gathering four separate "Exporters' Associations" operating in different sectors under a single roof, in other words, under a single General Secretariat. Since 1984, it has been providing services to exporters in the region and is headquartered in Gaziantep. The headquarters is located in Gaziantep, with liaison offices in Kahramanmaraş, Mardin, Malatya, Diyarbakır, Diyarbakır, Şanlıurfa, Adıyaman, Kilis, Cizre and Gaziantep Free Trade Zone.

With more than 16,000 members, the associations within GAIB are:

• Southeast Anatolian Textile and Raw Materials Exporters Association,
• Southeast Anatolian Cereals, Pulses, Oilseeds and Products Exporters Association,
• Southeast Anatolian Dried Fruits and Products Exporters Association,
• Southeast Anatolian Carpet Exporters Association.

Our General Secretariat carries out the secretariat services of the sector committees in the Textile and Raw Materials sector, the Cereals, Pulses, Oil Seeds and Products sector and the Carpet sector, which propose solutions to the problems of our exporters throughout Türkiye and shape the future of the sector.

The main objective of our associations:

• To ensure professional ethics and solidarity among exporters,
• To organize their professional activities and relations,
• To help exporters solve their economic and bureaucratic problems.

Our associations serve as a bridge between exporters and the bureaucracy. The problems, demands, opinions and suggestions experienced by the companies that are members of our asociations are brought to the agenda of the Board of Directors and Sector Boards, and as a result of the decisions taken, necessary initiatives are taken urgently before the relevant authorities. In this way, we contribute to solving the problems faced by our exporters, removing obstacles to exports and increasing the country's exports.

Under the coordination and auspices of the Ministry of Trade and the Türkiye Exporters Assembly (TİM), projects determined by our Board of Directors and Sector Boards are carried out by our associations, aiming to increase the international competitiveness of member companies. Within this framework, sectoral promotion projects and Ur-Ge (Improving International Competitiveness) projects are implemented under the supervision of the Ministry. By participating in sectoral fairs organized in Türkiye and abroad, our exporters are successfully represented on national and international platforms, and, in this way, we are taking firm steps towards an export performance worthy of the second century of our Republic.

Another task performed by our General Secretariat is to regularly inform our members on many issues such as legislative changes, international agreements, non-tariff measures, consultation meetings organized by public institutions, activities such as procurement delegations and trade delegations organized by other Associations and trade organizations, and national or international tenders. In addition to the activities carried out within its own body, our Associations continue to support many activities carried out by other non-governmental organizations, universities and professional organizations, which are evaluated by the Board of Directors and which are deemed to be beneficial for the sector and our exporters.

With the organization of our General Secretariat, trainings and seminars are held on various subjects in order to contribute to the exports of our region and to meet the qualified workforce needs of the sectors. In addition, various training meetings and seminars are organized for the officials and employees of our member companies with the coordination of the Ministry of Trade.

Simultaneously with the fairs held in our region, buyer delegation programs are organized in which qualified buyers from abroad hold bilateral meetings with our exporters, thus enabling our companies to communicate directly with potential buyers interested in their products.

Workshops and consultation meetings are organized in different sectors, where current problems of the sector are discussed and solution proposals are developed. From time to time, officials from the relevant public institutions and organizations of our country also attend such meetings, and thus our exporters have the opportunity to communicate their problems directly to the relevant authorities.

Officials of the public institutions and organizations of some countries where there are problems in exports and some countries that are considered strategic targets by our Boards of Directors are hosted in Gaziantep, they are informed about our exporters and our potential, one-on-one meetings and factory visits are held with our exporters when necessary, and in this way, ideas are exchanged to remove the obstacles to exports to these countries and to ensure more effective inclusion in the market.

Our associations act with the awareness that training activities are of great importance for the future of our sectors. For this purpose, "Southeast Anatolian Exporters Associations Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School" has started its educational activities within the scope of the "Put a Brick in Education" project implemented by the Governorship of Gaziantep. And again, "GAHİB Carpet and Foreign Trade Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School" which was founded in cooperation with the Governorship of Gaziantep and our Carpet Exporters' Association, brings qualified personnel to the sector. In addition to these, the Midyat Faculty of Art and Design, whose construction was completed by our Cereals, Pulses, Oil Seeds and Products Exporters' Association, started its activities in 2023.

Gaziantep Laboratory Directorate, where the quality and reliability analyzes of our members' products subject to export can be carried out, has also been completed by our Associations and put into the service of our exporters.

Our institution, located in Gaziantep, Turkey's 6th largest export city, contributes more and more to our country's export targets every day, drawing its strength from the dynamics of its region and city.