Location : Turkey straddles the continents of Europe and Asia, with borders to seven countries – Greece and Bulgaria in the north-west, Syria in the south, Iraq in the south-east, Armenia, Georgia and Iran in the east. It is a bridge to Europe from Asia and the Middle-East. The country is bordered by four seas – Black Sea, Marmaris, Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean. The Bosphorous is a narrow strait of water separating the European (Thrace) and Anatolian (Asian Minor) side of Turkey.

Size : Stretching over 1,650km from West to East, and with a land area of almost 780,000 sq. kilometers (300,000 sq. miles) i.e. approx.1.5 times the size of France.

Capital city: Ankara is the capital and seat of Government. It is the second largest city after Istanbul and is an industrial and commercial centre, with a population of 4.5 million. Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey with an official population of 13 million, but unofficially 15+ million. As well as being a megacity, the city is the cultural, economic and financial centre of Turkey. It was the European Capital of Culture in 2010. İzmir is a large metropolis on the Aegean Sea in western Anatolia and Turkey's third most populous city (3.3 million) and the second-largest port city after Istanbul. Bursa, located in north-west Turkey, with a population of 1.9 million, is the fourth largest city, as well as one of the most industrialized metropolitan centres. Adana has a population of nearly 1.6 million, making it the fifth most populous city in Turkey. It is a major agricultural and commercial centre, situated 30 km inland from the Mediterranean Sea, in south-central Anatolia. Other major cities include Gaziantep, SE Anatolia (1.3 million) and Konya, Central Anatolia (1 million).

Landscape: The Turkish landscape consists of coastal plains, rolling hills, barren steppe, semi-desert regions and impressive mountains running east to west (highest peak Mt. Ararat 5,137m) where winters are long and cold.

Population: The population in Turkey is growing faster than in the European Union. Currently, the official statistics put the population at 73 million, with a growth rate of 1.2%. The population is young with 26% under 14 years old, 50% under 29 years and only 6% over 65 year, with a median age of 28 years. 70% of the population live in urban conglomerations. By nationality, the breakdown is Turkish 70-75%, Kurdish 18%, other minorities 7-12%. In terms of religious denomination, 99.8% are Muslim (mainly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews).

Languages: Turkish

Currency: The currency is known as Turkish Lira (TL). The current value of the Lira is € 1 = TL 2.3. Whereas inflation was a severe problem up to the year 2000, the currency has stabilised in the last decade and actually rose against the dollar and euro in recent years.

Climate: The Mediterranean and Black Sea coastal areas experience mild and somewhat rainy winters, with summer temperatures averaging 28C and winters 5-7C. Inland, the higher elevations experience a steppe climate with summer average temperatures of 23C and winters -2C. Further east and south-east, summer temperatures average 17C and winters -13C and 5-6 months snow is usual.

Life Sciences Sector in Turkey

Healthcare Sector

Major healthcare providers in Turkey are the Ministry of Health, the Social Security Institution, the Ministry of Defence, universities and private health operators. Both public and private sector hospitals have been increasing in number in recent years. In 2008, 72.5 percent of 1,350 hospitals were run by the public sector, mostly attached to the Ministry of Health. By the end of 2013 the total number of hospitals is expected to be above 1,400. The dominance of the public sector in bed capacity is expected to decrease as the share of the private sector in hospitals around the country increases.

Pharmaceutical Sector

Currently there are 43 pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in turkey. Fourteen of these manufacturing facilities belong to multinational companies. The market is highly fragmented and competitive with the top ten drug producers contributing about 50 percent market share; the top 20 contribute about 70 percent.

The healthcare system in Turkey has entered a long period of development under the 2003-2013 Health Transformation Program. The purpose of the program is to increase the quality and efficiency of the healthcare system and enhance access to healthcare facilities.

Turkey is one of the fastest growing pharmaceutical markets in Europe and ranks as the 16th largest pharmaceutical producer in the world, and the 6thlargest pharmaceutical market in Europe, following Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Spain.

The Turkish pharmaceutical industry employs approximately 25,000 people.

Drug and Medical Device Agency, a division of the Ministry of Health, is in charge of the regulation and control of pharmaceutical prices. Manufacturers and importers are obliged to apply to the Ministry of Health for the authorization of new product prices, as well as for price increases and decreases.

Turkey’s annual healthcare spending in 2009 was USD 38 billion, representing 6.2 percent of total GDP. The pharmaceuticals market, a key component of the overall sector, generated revenue of USD 10.8 billion in 2009. Turkey ranks as the 16th largest pharmaceutical manufacturer worldwide and the 6th largest pharmaceutical market in Europe, after Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Spain.

The prescription market, accounting for 90.5% of the pharmaceuticals market, is expected to remain dominant in the years ahead as hospitals and doctors remain the primary access points to healthcare.

The Turkish medical devices market, a promising component of the healthcare industry, is ranked within the top 30 largest markets in the world. In 2010, the Turkish medical equipment and supplies market is assessed to be worth USD 2.1 billion.

Total healthcare spending is forecasted to rise to about USD 63 billion in 2014, but could be substantially higher if the government fails to restrain public spending on health. The total pharmaceutical market is expected to reach USD 22.8 billion by the end of 2015, while the medical devices market is forecasted to reach USD 3.12 billion.

In 2009, Turkey ranked 35th among sixty countries and 3rd among major emerging markets, including South Korea, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, China and India in terms of healthcare spending (see diagram below). Some of the emerging markets, including Turkey, experienced double digit compound annual growth rates whilst mature markets such as the US and the UK had single digit growth rates from 2004 to 2009. Moreover, healthcare spending per person is expected to continue increasing at a faster CAGR between 2008-2013 in Turkey and other developing countries than in many developed countries in Europe and the US.

In 2010, Turkey’s healthcare spending per capita is estimated to be USD 817, which is still at a low level relative to more developed countries. However, it is expected to grow into the future in line with:

• The gradual introduction of universal healthcare insurance scheme;
• Increase in annual income per person;
• Growing health awareness;
• A steady rise in life expectancy and the size of the elderly population.

Medical Devices Sector

The medical devices market is gradually growing and Turkey is ranked within the top 30 markets in the world. In 2010 the market was estimated at USD 2.1 billion, up from USD 1.1 billion in the previous year. The growth has been driven by the heavy investments undertaken by the government in healthcare as part of the push to establish a Universal Healthcare System by 2013.
The outlook for the sector will depend on healthcare system modernisation and harmonization with EU standards and the expansion of private sector hospitals and other medical institutions. The market is forecasted at USD 3 billion by 2015.