Turkey's main opposition vows to build new mega city

The main opposition Republican People?s Party (CHP) has announced its much-trumpeted ?project of the century,? which will be focused on building an entirely new city named ?Center Turkey? with an investment of $200 billion.

Speaking at an Istanbul ceremony to introduce the project to create a ?logistics and production hub? on May 21, CHP chair Kemal K?l?çdaro?lu said the ambitious plans would create 2.2 million jobs.

?Our geographic location lets us reach 1.5 billion people in 58 countries in 4.5 hours. This project aims to use this unique advantage by building a mega city in Anatolia, which will go beyond being a logistics hub,? K?l?çdaro?lu added.

Although the exact location of the proposed new city has yet to be revealed, the CHP?s promotional film indicates an area on the crossroads of Turkey?s central, eastern and southeastern regions, somewhere near the province of Malatya.

The ?mega city,? with a population of 3,000,000, will be completed by 2035 with $40 billion public investment for infrastructure and $160 billion private investment for superstructure. Powered by renewable energy and designed as a smart city, it will host production plants, logistics and trade facilities, R&D centers, technoparks, cultural institutions and a free trade zone.

According to the CHP, the new city will create 2.2 million jobs and $147 billion additional revenue every year by 2035. If elected as the government in the June 7 general elections, the party vows to increase Turkey?s national income to $2.7 trillion by 2035, 5.5 percent of which will come from the new city. 

The new city?s residents will have annual income per head of $3,000 more than the national average of $30,294 in 20 years.

Stressing the importance...