‘Become a Citizen of Your Adopted Country’

The Research Commission chaired by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Istanbul deputy, Mustafa Bas finalized plans for the initiative on Wednesday. The commission’s final report, to be submitted to Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc, was unanimously approved by AKP and Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputies in the commission.

The report notes that due to the migration of the Turkish labor force to Europe, beginning in the 1960s, the number of Turks living abroad was currently 3.5 million, not including those who have assumed citizenship of their adopted countries. It also discusses their contribution to the Turkish economy.

The report states that about 80,000 Turkish citizens who were previously employees, have now become employers. Turkish citizens have generated jobs for nearly 420,000 people and their annual turnover was in the region of 35 million Euros. From 1961 to the present, Turkish citizens abroad have injected US$127 billion back into the Turkish economy.