WASHINGTON, May 23 (UPI) -- Turkey has been a model for developing countries over the last 30 years but still faces problems in its bid to become a member of the EU.
While the country acts as a cultural bridge between east and west, Turkey will have to reduce unemployment and strengthen its business environment to succeed in its bid for European Union membership, says Paul Wolfowitz, president of the World Bank.
"Countries around the world can learn from" Turkey, he said. "Turkey's membership will enrich Europe just as much as it will enrich Turkey."
Wolfowitz was delivering the second annual Sakip Sabanci lecture at The Brookings Institution Tuesday; the speech was also broadcast via video link at Sabanci University in Istanbul, Turkey.
When he first went to Turkey 30 years ago he expected to see a country that resembled the Middle East more than Europe, Wolfowitz said, but he instead found a country that embraced the best of both worlds.
"The pace of progress (in Turkey) has been stunning," he said. The country's recovery since a 2001 financial crisis "has been nothing short of remarkable."
The Turkish economy is growing an average of eight percent per year, he said.
"Citizens can now plan for their future," he said.
Yet the country's unemployment rate of 10 percent "poses one of the biggest challenges" to the country's European Union membership.
"Turkey will need to create 10 million new jobs in the next six years in order to catch up with the European Union," he said.
If Turkey creates a more welcoming business environment for foreign investors, it could reduce unemployment by 1 to 4 percentage points, according to World Bank estimates, Wolfowitz said.
