The International Symposium on the History of Ottoman Economics is being held in cooperation with Marmara University and Güngören Municipality in memory of Mehmet Genç, one of the world's leading thinkers in the history of Ottoman economics, who passed away last March.

In the opening speech of the symposium, Güngören Mayor Dr. Bünyamin Demir stated that although he is an architect, he has a doctorate degree in the field of economic history and said, "When our sir  Mehmet passed away, I called Mr. Erol Özvar and said that we wanted to hold a symposium on behalf of him. When he said that we have such a request, we decided to do it together.”

Marmara University Vice-Rector Prof. Dr. Mustafa Çelen said, “The best way to commemorate a lecturer who does science like Mehmet Genç is to hold a science congress or symposium. Our lecturer Mehmet Genç trained students at Marmara University for 20 years and has a very important reputation in the world. Both Marmara University and our country have trained very important professors in the field of economic history.'

Speakers who took the floor at the opening panel titled “Mehmet Genç's Legacy” explained Mehmet Genç's perspective on economic history and his working methods. Prof. Dr. Ahmet Tabakoğl, who is a retired lecturer from Marmara University,  stated that being among the economic historians made him feel safe and said, “The history of economics is a multidisciplinary branch. If you want to be an economic historian, you will know economics and finance. If you are going to deal with Ottoman history, you will also know fiqh.'

Prof. Dr. İdris Bostan said, “Usually, those who knew him in the archive environment or in the classroom saw him with his real identity. We were reluctant to speak in front of him because he knew more than we did, even about topics in our areas of expertise. He was an economist who did not see every work he did as sufficient and strived to do better, and knows almost all the documents in the archive.”

Academicians from Turkey and abroad will present their work in 15 different sessions to be held on 17, 18 and 19 December at Güngören Municipality Genç Osman Cultural Center. It is also planned to publish the papers presented during the symposium as a book.