Nihat Zeybekci (born 1 January 1961) is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

economist, politician, a

member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Denizli Province Denizli Province ( tr, ) is a province of Turkey in Western Anatolia, on high ground above the Aegean coast. Neighbouring provinces are Uşak to the north, Burdur, Isparta, Afyon to the east, Aydın, Manisa to the west and Muğla to the south. ...

of the ruling

Justice and Development Party Justice and Development Party may refer to several political parties, the best-known ones being: * Justice and Development Party (Morocco) * Justice and Development Party (Turkey) Justice and Development Party may also refer to: * Justice and Dev ...

(AKP) and the current Minister of the Economy.

Early life

Nihat Zeybekci was born to Şükrü and Fatma Zeybekci as the youngest of five children in the village of Pınarlar in Tavas district of

on 1 January 1961. The family earned their living from

tobacco farming The cultivation of tobacco usually takes place annually. The tobacco is germinated in cold frames or hotbeds and then transplanted to the field until it matures. It is grown in warm climates with rich, well-drained soil. About ''4.2 million'' hec ...

, and Nihat helped his parents in his youth. After studying Business Administration at

Marmara University Marmara University ( Turkish: ''Marmara Üniversitesi'') is a public university in Istanbul, Turkey. The university is named after the Sea of Marmara and was founded as a university in 1982. However, it was created in 1883 under the name of ''H ...

, he received his master's degree in International Relations from

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

. He also claimed to have conducted further studies in economics at

South London College Lambeth College is a further education college in the London Borough of Lambeth. It was formed in 1992 from three former institutions – Vauxhall College of Building and Further Education, Brixton College of Further Education, and South London C ...

in the United Kingdom, but he removed this information from his official resume after it turned out to be false. He is married and has four children.

Career

Profession

Zeybekci served as executive for companies in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

and Denizli. In 1994, he founded a textile company. He was elected into the Denizli Chamber of Industry and chaired two terms Denizli Textile and Apparel Exporters' Association.

Politics

Zeybekci entered politics at regional level. In the 2004 local elections, he was elected Mayor of Denizli from the Justice and Development Party. He was re-elected to the post in the 2009 local elections. In 2011, he resigned to run for a seat in the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. During this time, he represented his city and country in some organizations for regional administrations at national and international level. He was elected into the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Consti ...

in the 2011 general election as an MP from

. On 26 December 2013, Nihat Zeybekci assumed office as the Minister of Economic Affairs, succeeding

Zafer Çağlayan Mehmet Zafer Çağlayan (born 10 November 1957 in Muş) is a Turkish politician and former Minister. He is a member of parliament from the ruling Justice and Development Party and the former Minister of Economic Affairs under Prime Minister R ...

during Prime Minister Erdoğan's cabinet reshuffle with ten new names that was announced the day before, on 25 December, following the

2013 corruption scandal in Turkey The 2013 corruption scandal in Turkey or 17-25 December Corruption and Bribery Operation was a criminal investigation that involved several key people in the Turkish government. All of the 52 people detained on 17 December were connected in var ...

. He is considered as a close friend of Erdoğan, who spends his summer holidays together with Zeybekci.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zeybekci, Nihat 1961 births People from Tavas Marmara University alumni Istanbul University alumni Turkish economists Justice and Development Party (Turkey) politicians Deputies of Denizli Ministers of Economic Affairs of Turkey Living people Mayors of places in Turkey Mayors of Denizli Members of the 25th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 24th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 63rd government of Turkey Members of the 26th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 65th government of Turkey