The guide aims to contribute to the creation of strategic plans, which is the highest level political document of municipalities, in line with legislation, good governance principles, Sustainable Development Goals and OECD Quality of Life Approach, in a way that is inclusive of women, children, disabled and elderly people. It offers a comprehensive roadmap for municipalities that want to provide equal and fair services to all segments of the society with a social municipality approach and are sensitive to the principle of gender equality.

According to the legislation, municipalities have to prepare their 5-year strategic plans within 6 months after the local elections. The creation of all urban policies with an integrated, inclusive and gender equality perspective is critical for strategic plans. These documents reveal the 5-year policies and roadmaps of local governments and give women voters an idea about how they will be a municipality.

The guide, prepared by Argüden Governance Academy in cooperation with KA.DER, contains useful practical information that municipalities can benefit from so that these plans are integrated and inclusive. It also ensures that the plans are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, OECD Quality of Life and International Integrated Reporting Council approaches, covering women, children, disabled and elderly people, in line with the legislation and good governance principles.

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS WITH MORE EQUAL DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES ARE POSSIBLE

The introductory meeting held at KA.DER Headquarters in Istanbul yesterday with the participation of municipality, non-governmental organizations and political party representatives started with the opening speech of KA.DER Chairman Nuray Karaoğlu. Reminding that women's representation in local governments is far from the principle of equality, Karaoğlu said:

“The inequality caused by gender roles differentiates the needs and problems of women. Strategic plan performance and budget are very important in considering different solutions to differing needs in local government policies. It is possible to create local governments where resources are distributed more equitably towards the needs of the genders. We hope and wish that this study will be a guide for municipalities to prepare an integrated and inclusive strategic plan.”

Argüden Governance Academy founder Dr. Yılmaz Argüden, on the other hand, said in his speech that the trust in municipalities will increase with the implementation of good governance principles. He stated that the prepared guide will contribute to the municipality's strategic plans to ensure that the local needs and demands of all segments of society, especially women, are compatible with the vision of sustainable development based on good governance culture. He also emphasized that the main goal is to improve the quality of life of girls, women, the disabled and other disadvantaged social groups and to support them to live as equal individuals.

ONLY 31 OF 201 MUNICIPALITIES HAVE WOMEN'S SHELTERS

Ayşe Kaşıkırık, Projects Coordinator of KA.DER, stated that the needs of every woman are different and that municipalities should analyze these needs well and shape their services accordingly, and expressed that providing equal services to everyone deepens the existing inequality. Kaşıkırık stated that according to the Municipality Law No. 5393, metropolitan municipalities and municipalities with a population of over 100 thousand have to open shelters for women and children, and that according to 2018 data, only 31 of the 201 municipalities that have this obligation in Türkiye have women's shelters. He also gave examples:
The municipality of Şişli and Beşiktaş in Istanbul put 50 percent of the wages of the worker who perpetrated violence against his wife and children in a collective bargaining agreement for one year to be paid to his wife and child for a period of one year.

EQUALITY UNIT IS REQUIRED IN EVERY MUNICIPALITY

In the introductory meeting, it was stated that municipalities should be open to participation and reporting at every stage of the strategic plan, and the Women-Friendly City Commitment campaign carried out by KA.DER before the local elections was also mentioned. It was underlined that an Equality Unit and Equality Commission should be established in each municipality. While Dr. İnan İzci from Argüden Governance Academy stated that municipalities should prepare their strategic plans in line with the gender equality target of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Dr. Erkin Erimez reminded that municipalities are responsible for improving the quality of life of their citizens, the most important actor in the strategic planning process is the mayor, and the collection and analysis of data is an important step in strategic planning. KA.DER will hold similar introductory meetings in Adana and Mersin on 5-6 September 2019 and will publish this guide.

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