Unlocking Opportunities in Izmir: Turkey’s Emerging Software Hub
Izmir is the third largest city in Turkey and the most important trade and industry centre of the Aegean Region. In recent years, Izmir has also become an important centre in the IT sector and has become known as “Turkey’s Software Valley”.
İzmir has several important advantages underlying this reputation.
Points where Izmir has advantages in the IT sector:
Qualified Labour Force: Izmir is home to well-established and reputable universities such as Ege University, Dokuz Eylül University and Izmir University of Economics. A large number of qualified IT specialists graduate from these universities every year. In addition, after the pandemic, Izmir has become a city where senior software developers choose to live by working remotely in multinational and/or large-scale domestic companies due to the intensity of remote working in the software sector. In this sense, it also has the highest district attracting qualified migration.
- Increasing Investments: Izmir has attracted attention with increasing investments in the IT sector in recent years. Many international and domestic software companies have opened offices or made investments in Izmir.
- Technoparks and special software clusters: There are a total of 4 technoparks in Izmir.
1- Izmir Institute of Technology – Izmir Technology Development Zone
– 223 Companies, 1850 Employees, 387 R&D Projects and 5 Billion Turnover
2- Izmir University of Economics – Izmir Science and Technology Park Technology Development Zone
– 300 Companies and 1800 Employees
3- Dokuz Eylül University – Dokuz Eylül Technology Development Zone
– 131 companies, 2010 employees and 200 projects
4- Ege University – Ege Teknopark Technology Development Zone
– 154 Company
- Supportive Economic System: Izmir has an economic system that supports entrepreneurship and new businesses. Organisations such as the Izmir Development Agency offer financial and technical support to entrepreneurs in the IT sector. It is the pioneer of organisations that have been opened with the cooperation of more than one university and public institutions and that host initiatives and grow and nurture the sector.
- Quality of Life: Izmir is a city that attracts attention with its high quality of life. Izmir has many advantages such as mild climate, beautiful beaches, historical and touristic places, rich cultural life and affordable cost of living.