All institutions in the local administration of Bandırma started a movement with a civil initiative to make their voices heard in Ankara with the slogan "Bandırma: Pearl of Marmara, 1st of Provinces".
Bandırma Chamber of Commerce President Adem Yılmaz, noted that Bandırma, which has been trying to become a province for many years since the issue was brought to the agenda by politicians, has always kept this issue on its agenda, is both hopeful and excited.
"Bandırma reveals its value with its advantages such as its geographical location, economic and socio-cultural situation, demographic and population structure, social development level, and ever-increasing trade and industry volume. Due to the fact that Balıkesir is experiencing the problems of its distance from the city center, it has wanted to be a province for years, has expressed this at every opportunity and has made efforts in this regard", he said.
“WE FOLLOW ALL CRITERIAS”
Emphasizing that Bandırma fulfills all the criteria in terms of population, distance from the city center, urbanization, transportation status, hinterland, economic diversity and educational status, Yılmaz said, "All of the conditions listed are more than enough in our district. We are 100 km from the city center. The distance of Erdek and Adalar, which we think will be connected to us with Bandırma being a province, is even further. This distance from the city center causes our people to lose time and money in the transactions that need to be made in the center. Bandırma is ahead of many cities in terms of urbanization and population. We are one of the rare cities where road connections, sea routes, railways and air bases come together. Bandırma is one of the three districts with universities in our country. This is a very important criterion for us to see the level of development of Bandırma. Our industrial investments have also increased considerably. Our enterprises that provide investment, production and employment in our established OIZs provide added value to our country. Our newly established OIZs will also increase this added value. OIZs explain how important our region is in terms of investments. For these reasons, our city, which is perhaps one of the districts that most deserve to be a province; As Bandırma Chamber of Commerce, we will be there for every organization to be made and every step to be taken to relieve this longing, and we will do our best for the development of our city."