Türkiye empowers its citizens to become self-sufficient through social services: Deputy minister

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Türkiye empowers its citizens to become self-sufficient through social services, Deputy Minister of Family and Social Services Yavuz Selim Kiran said Tuesday.

"Development is a concept encompassing not just economic development but also communal and social progress," Kiran told a UN meeting in New York.

Kiran attended a ministerial forum of the 62nd Session of the Commission for Social Development (CSocD62) with the theme “How to improve mainstreaming of social considerations in development frameworks?”

He said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes that numerous global challenges arise not due to a scarcity of material resources but rather from a deficiency in compassion.

"In Türkiye, our policies regarding women, children, older persons, persons with disabilities and those in need are a manifestation of this philosophy. We are empowering our citizens to become self-sufficient through the social services we provide," he noted.

With care and rehabilitation centers and accessibility studies, Türkiye implements programs for people with disabilities to integrate them into social life.

Kiran also underlined the importance of the day care services and projects to promote "active and healthy aging" for older persons.

"With our projects, we support girls who aspire to become engineers in all fields, just as we support young women who are not in education, employment or training. We are expanding our foster family models for our children whose families are unable to care for them," he added.

Turning to last year's deadly Feb. 6 earthquakes in southern Türkiye, Kiran said Ankara also ​​​​​promptly addressed the devastation.

"We offer social services and assistance to individuals affected by disasters unconditionally, aiming to build a more resilient society against such disasters," he added. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​