4.5 Billion Lira Financing Support for Women's Cooperatives

September 16, 2026 · AA Tarım & Ekonomi

A 4.5 billion lira credit package has been allocated for women's cooperatives under the coordination of the Ministry of Trade, while KOOP-DES grant conditions and e-commerce sales commissions have been restructured in favor of producers.

Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat made comprehensive statements regarding agricultural production, marketing opportunities, and the cooperative ecosystem at the closing program of the Women's Cooperatives Support and Coordination Center Project, carried out by the Women and Democracy Association. Stating that the economic power of women producers is being increased within the scope of the Program for the Support of Cooperatives (KOOP-DES), Minister Bolat emphasized that the projects carried out have successfully reached their goals. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat stated that steps to develop the institutional capacities of local producers will continue uninterruptedly and made the following assessment:

Reminding that cooperatives across Turkey operate under the coordination of three different ministries, Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat shared official data regarding the existing institutional capacity within his area of responsibility. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat stated the following in his remarks on the subject:

The Ministry continues to strengthen the institutional structure of producer partnerships, reporting that training and corporate awareness efforts are ongoing throughout Anatolia and Thrace.

Thanks to the legal regulations implemented within the scope of the Cooperatives Law, official financial burdens on businesses established by women and disadvantaged groups have been lifted. According to the Ministry of Trade data, full exemptions have been provided for cost items such as registration, announcement, trade registry fees, and annual and fixed dues. Bolat stated that technical guidance is provided to producers through a joint protocol signed in cooperation with the Ministry of Family and Social Services and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and pointed to the incentive packages announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan within the framework of the Turkish Cooperativism Strategy and Action Plan. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat said the following regarding legislative facilitations:

Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat shared the following information regarding the production diversity of women's cooperatives operating across the country:

The Minister announced that within the program, KOOP-DES support conditions have been improved in favor of producers, stating that the waiting period for re-utilization of grants has been reduced from 5 years to 4 years, and the upper limit for fair participation grants has been increased to 150,000 TL. Within the scope of employment incentives, direct cash resources of 420,000 TL per year for one employee and 840,000 TL per year for cooperatives employing two personnel are being transferred. According to official data from the Ministry of Trade, a total of 151.5 million TL in grant payments were made to 907 projects prepared by 848 cooperatives in the 2020-2025 period.

A special credit package of 4.5 billion TL has been allocated in cooperation with the Credit Guarantee Fund and TESKOMB to facilitate women producers' access to working capital and finance. A strategic cooperation protocol has been signed with the 5 largest e-commerce platforms in the country to directly deliver agricultural products and processed food items to consumer markets. In line with this protocol, women's cooperatives can register on the relevant marketplaces completely free of charge. Furthermore, producers are provided with the opportunity to sell directly online with zero commission for the first 6 months, and only a symbolic commission rate of 1% for the subsequent 4.5-year period.

With the support of the Ministry of Trade's Directorate General of Exports, the effectiveness of women's cooperatives in foreign markets has gained momentum. According to Ministry data, the number of women's cooperatives conducting direct exports reached 55 as of 2025. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat, announcing foreign trade figures, provided the following data:

Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat drew attention to the share of women's labor in overall export performance and continued his statement as follows:

According to TÜİK data, the female unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level in the last 166 months at 9.9%. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat pointed to the role of agricultural producer cooperatives in market balance. Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat stated the following in his assessment:

Referring to the calendar of events carried out to promote local products in national and international markets, Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat concluded his remarks with the following announcement:

Türkçe