History
Our Chamber was established in 1923 on the basis of the "CHARTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY CHAMBERS" published on May 31, 1910. In the founding years of our Republic, in order to encourage and organize the private sector, the Chambers of Commerce and Industry Law No. 655 was enacted on April 22, 1925, determining the structure, constitution, purpose, membership and functioning of our Chamber. Accordingly, the year in which the official activities of our Chamber were launched is expressed as 1929. As the country was emerging from the war during the first years of the Republic, the organization, restoration and capital accumulation of the private sector took many years; and then in 1939, with the outbreak of World War II, our country‘s economy again entered a difficult phase.
During this period, our Chamber tracked the records of Çanakkale’s tradesman. After 1946, as the country entered a period of multi-party politics and democracy, the private sector began to experience growth and revival under the leadership of the government, marking a new era in Turkey, supported by the entry into force of the law related to the establishment of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey on March 8, 1950.
In this new period, our Chamber started to witness the development of industry in Çanakkale, including the establishment of the Çanakkale Cement Factory in Dardanos affiliated with the Turkey Cement and Soil Industry Plant; the Çanakkale Ceramic Plants, Akfa, Trutaş, Pınar Canned Foods, Kepez Canned Foods and other similar small-scale food plants in Çan.
In the 2000s, under the impact of the Customs Union, our Chamber has made considerable progress in areas such as export-based growth, infrastructure investments, Organized Industrial Zones, the European Union, Internet-based information transfer, training programs, seminars and interorganizational cooperation and dialogue. In this period, our Chamber has been reorganized with the Law on Chambers and Stock Exchanges numbered 5174 that was enacted on May 18, 2004, which has changed the identity our Chamber from a public institution to a non-governmental organization.
Today, our Chamber continues to pioneer the development of the economy of our province, with exports exceeding 1.5 billion Dollars, ports and roads opening to Europe, an airport, an Organized Industrial Zone, sea transportation, universities, and brands like Troy, Kazdağı, Ezine Cheese and Ayvacık Olive Oil, along with its globally recognized tourism potential.