Turkey 's Recep Tayyip Erdogan has made history as the country 's first directly elected president but his ambitious economic plans could be scuttled by the region 's volatile geopolitics . As prime minister , Erdogan presided over the dramatic rise and fall of Turkey 's economy , wooing the emerging East before being undone by the winding back of stimulus programs in the West . Despite the economic decline , and a 52 % presidential vote being lower than expected , Erdogan 's aims for expansion remain undimmed . He has outlined plans to boost Turkey 's GDP from $ 820 billion in 2013 to $ 2 trillion in 2023 , and to more than double per capita income from just under $ 11,000 to $ 25,000 in the same time frame . The year 2023 is important to Erdogan , as it is the 100th anniversary of the country 's founding as a modern state by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk . Near term , the real challenge is avoiding stagnation due to the challenges in neighboring Syria and especially in Northern Iraq -- where the march of terrorist group ISIS continues -- which are undermining growth . After hitting 2 % in 2012 , the economy grew 4 % last year . The government is expecting to show 4 % growth for 2014 . In his victory speech Erdogan , who as PM presided over the violent Gezi Park protests , a Twitter blackout and a corruption probe that hit the government , declared he wanted to start a `` social reconciliation '' period , leaving the `` tensions , culture of clashes and virtual problems '' in the `` old Turkey . '' Erdogan 's force of personality carried him through nearly 12 years of prime ministership and he should not be underestimated in this new role . But his controversial rule as prime minister prompted ratings agency Fitch to Monday say political risk remained high as Erdogan shifted his power to president . `` Given the anti-government protests last summer in response to Erdogan 's perceived authoritarian tendencies , '' Fitch said , `` political tension is likely to remain high as Erdogan seeks to extend the power of the presidency . '' Fitch warned Turkey 's `` policy coherence and credibility '' was already weaker than its ratings peers , noting Erdogan 's leadership had contributed to political risk that fed credit weakness . Beyond the domestic concerns , Erdogan can not control the volatility of his country 's neighborhood -- and could find his plans entangled in his own divisive history and that of the region . READ MORE : Understanding Turkey 's elections . READ MORE : Turkey 's economy goes from star to mess .
Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan becomes Turkey 's first directly elected president . He has been a controversial leader and is expected to be a powerful president . Erdogan has big economic plans but they may get foiled by geopolitical pressures .