 Governor of Kars, Mehmet Ufuk Erden expresses his views on the UNJP to Local Facilitator Sibel Alp Argunhan:
It is very important for our Governor’s Office to have a transparent, effective and participatory administration which includes women that make up half of our population.Local governments are the public space that is the closest, the most accessible to everyone. Our priority is to ensure that our girls go to school and continue their education.We also aim to prevent all sorts of violence, to ensure that more women take part in the work force and politics, and that women participate effectively in social life. In summary, we aim for Kars to become a "Women-friendly City."
The Joint Programme will help women and girls in our province to demand more services from the organizations in charge of service provision. Capacity building initiatives took place in provinces for local governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Officials serving in the governor’s office form another priority, as those units that provide public services are more aware of the central government and local governments’ vital role in creating a women-friendly city.
The Joint Programme played a role that increased cooperation among the central government, the local governments and the women's NGOs. The service capacity for women in the governments in the province was mapped, and this capacity was reflected onto a total of 36 projects in the province. Representatives of agencies and organizations that participated in the UNJP had the opportunity to network amongst themselves and share their experience, creating a platform for solutions. People from different sections of the society now started talking about the protection and promotion of human rights of women and girls, and in Kars, particularly in the Governorate's Provincial Human Rights Committee, human resource output has come to being.
In our province, only one of the 23 members of the Provincial General Assembly is a woman, and not a single member of the Municipal Assembly is a woman. There are two women among the 22 quarter heads (muhtar). We want to take the necessary steps in partnership with the UNJP to ensure that more women take part in local decision making mechanisms.
In order to strengthen the rights of women and girls in Turkey, firstly the administrators should assert approaches that are gender-sensitive. Secondly, awareness must be raised through in-service training. Our country took important steps in 1926 by the adoption of the Civil Code and the electoral rights for women in 1935, long before many countries, thanks to the progressive vision of our great leader Atatürk. Apart from the developments achieved throughout the years, significant regulations introduced by the recently enacted Municipality and Provincial Special Administration Laws indicate that support for women will increase and continue at the level of central and local governments. The acceptance of 36 projects submitted to the Joint Programme demonstrates that our province Kars will take one more step forward, and all sectors in our province will continue to work effectively towards a "Women-friendly Kars."
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