"Turkish diaspora should be stronger"

The Prime Ministry’s Directorate of Overseas Turks seeks to expand Turkish lobbying efforts abroad and strengthen the Turkish diaspora, an honorary member of the Overseas Turks Advisory Board said Jan. 14. "If effective synergy is created between the [World Turkish Business Council] and the new initiative [Overseas Turks Advisory Board], there is no doubt that important progress will be made in regards to promotion of the Turkey brand and in lobbying activities," Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company and a recent honorary appointee to the advisory board, told Anatolia news agency. In addition to the 70 seats of the Overseas Turks Advisory Board, 10 honorary members, including Kent, were selected in December by the government. Kent also heads the advisory board of the World Turkish Business Council. The World Turkish Business Council operates under the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK). "We should expand Turkish lobbying to wide masses abroad. We should attach importance to efforts for making the Turkish diaspora one of the most effective diasporas in the world by conducting a sustainable diaspora strategy," Kent said, adding that they should help Turkish entrepreneurs use the Turkey brand. "However, it is still very early to discuss the details of studies of the [Overseas Turks Advisory Board]," he said.