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Geography

The Republic of Turkey is at the crossroads between Europe and Asia. It shares borders with Bulgaria and Greece, with Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and with the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic. It borders the Black Sea to the north and the Mediterranean and Aegean seas to the south-west. Turkey is engaged in the process of negotiations for accession to the European Union.

The country has a land area of 780,000 km2, and in 2005 the population was 73 million. The annual population growth rate has declined over the past few decades to an average of 1.6 per cent in recent years. About seven out of ten Turks live in urban areas.

The climate varies considerably across the country. Earthquake is a recurrent menace. Within the space of three months in 1999 two devastating earthquakes shook heavily populated north-western Turkey, causing the loss of thousands of lives and severe damage to property and livelihoods.

Agriculture

Agriculture’s share in the economy is dwindling and currently accounts for about 10.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), less than half of what it was in the 1980s.

Farms are typically fragmented, except in the prosperous Aegean and Marmara coastal regions. More than 90 per cent of farm households have no more than 20 hectares of land, and 66 per cent of all landholdings are less than 5 hectares in size. In 2003 the country had 3.1 million farms and landholdings on a total agricultural and forest area of about 61.3 million hectares. The number of farms is decreasing sharply as rural people migrate to urban areas.

About 4.3 million hectares of land are under irrigation. Without irrigation, much of the land can support only low-yielding dryland crops. Agricultural products for both domestic consumption and export include wheat and other cereals, pulses, oilseeds, cotton, tobacco, tea and a range of fruits and nuts, as well as Mediterranean fruits and vegetables.

There are substantial but declining numbers of cattle and sheep and a growing poultry sector. The country’s rangeland area has shrunk to an estimated one third of its level in the late 1930s. An imbalance in demand for and production of livestock feed results in overgrazing, which degrades pasture.

Economy

Turkey is a middle-income country with a dynamic, market-oriented economy. During the five years prior to 2001 high inflation and an unstable currency plagued the country, culminating in a severe financial crisis in 2000-2001. Since then the government has been implementing a solid reform programme. It has adjusted agricultural support policies to counter the negative effects of subsidies and promote efficiency and productivity in agriculture.

The structure of Turkey’s economy is changing as growth in the manufacturing and services sectors outpace agricultural growth. In the 1980s agriculture employed about half of the labour force but now employs one third. Overall unemployment is relatively high, at 10.3 per cent in 2005.  Gross national income per capita in 2005 was US$4,710 and the gross domestic product (GDP) of US$363.3 billion for that year was growing at an annual rate of 7.4 per cent.

Source: IFAD