Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Deputy Minister Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan attended the e-Safe event themed “Digital Infrastructures in Times of Crisis.”
Drawing attention to the developments during the process that began with the pandemic, Sayan mentioned that they took rapid measures. Referring to the prominence of the electronic communications sector in this process, Sayan reminded that operators also worked devotedly during the epidemic period.
When comparing only the data from the last three-month period, fixed broadband usage increased by approximately 20% and mobile data usage by 5.7% compared to the previous period, said Sayan. “Risk assessments regarding the Covid-19 outbreak were conducted and necessary measures were taken in coordination with operators in a timely manner; our communication infrastructure was monitored in real-time and quick actions were taken when necessary, ensuring that service continuity was not affected and no capacity issues originating from the infrastructure occurred in communications. Additionally, to ensure the continuity of communications, we coordinated with Governorships and Municipalities to take the necessary measures for intervening in problems and continuing installations and investments, and we did not encounter any adverse situations,” he shared.
Deputy Minister Sayan: Our Country Has a Cost Advantage in E-Commerce
Pointing out that the postal sector was another sector that played an important role during the COVID-19 process, Sayan also highlighted the increase in e-commerce. Stating that 10 years' worth of progress had been made in e-commerce, Sayan said, “We see that Turkey also has an advantage in terms of costs in this area. Considering the country's geographical location and the presence of logistics hubs like Istanbul Airport, we are in a highly advantageous position in international e-commerce. However, we still have a long way to go. We see significant cooperation opportunities, especially in logistics and cargo. In particular, through cooperation between our National Postal Administrations, we can take steps to open ETOs (Extraterritorial Offices of Exchange, Cross-Border Exchange Offices) and IMPC codes (International Mail Processing Centres) reciprocally.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: Reliability is as Important as Social Diversity for Our People
Social media companies were also on Deputy Minister Sayan’s agenda. Stating that a non-digital society would be disconnected from all other societies, Sayan said, “Especially when we consider the power and universality of social media, it is not possible for us to live by closing ourselves off from developments. However, we are very sensitive on this matter as well. As you know, we persistently emphasize at every opportunity that social networks should open a representation in our country, but unfortunately, we have not yet seen any action. For our people, reliability is as important as social diversity. Therefore, as our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also expressed, ‘We are not so detached from life that we close our eyes to the truth or turn our backs on it.’ And we are aware that these platforms are areas that can never be neglected.”
Sayan concluded his speech by emphasizing the importance of domestic and national production.