Major Sustainable Human Development Challenges in Turkey

The Turkey NHDR is a thorough analysis of the country's human development situation, both within the country and vis-à-vis other countries. Turkey's record of achievement in human development over the past three decades has brought it close to achieving a high human development ranking internationally. However, although the report recognizes the country’s commitment to pursuing sustainable human development, there is still much to be done. Looking at the existing disparities within the country, the report identifies possible areas for future development investment, for example, a sustained investment in female education and policy options to stimulate rural development. The authors hope that the report will facilitate, enrich and broaden the policy dialogue on sustainable human development in Turkey by building further on the emerging consensus on what sustainable human development means in the Turkish context, identifying priorities for the future, based on an informed understanding of where the developmental shortfalls exist and by raising policy issues which may be translated into legislation. Finally, the report concludes that as people are the country’s greatest resource, broader public participation and widened partnerships within and across civil society are required to ensure Turkey's future stability and sustainability.