The Centre, in collaboration with D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Agriculture and Rural Development Support Institution (ARDSI) of Turkey, organised a workshop on ‘‘Rural Development Policies’’ on 14-15 May 2015 in Ankara, Turkey. The workshop was attended by the related experts from OIC Member Countries which are also in the constitution of D-8. Two technical visits were also held within the frame of the above title.

The workshop started with opening speeches of the heads of three collaborating institutions and continued through several presentations on Rural Development Policies and Implementations, Organizational Structure and Implementation Processes of ARDSI, Project Preparation, Project Evaluation, Project Cycle Management and Business Plan Evaluations, Spot Controls and Payment Authorization of Rural Development Projects, Payment Implementation and Accounting of Rural Development Projects.

During his address, Ambassador Musa Kulaklıkaya, Director General of SESRIC, stated that among almost half of the total population of the eight member countries of OIC and D-8 lives in rural areas and faces major challenges today, which arise mainly from globalisation, demographic change and the migration of young, well-trained people from a rural place to urban places. Amb. Kulaklıkaya highlighted that in order to ensure socio-economic development, employment opportunities should be evolved so that vast population living in rural areas able to find employment closer to their home.

Amb. Kulaklıkaya mentioned that decentralization of the national development projects, both technical and social infrastructure, particularly the establishment of factories, industries, universities and other manufacturing companies in rural areas, can increase the non-agricultural job opportunities in rural areas. In addition to this, he emphasized the necessity of adopting convenient rural development policies to eradicate those socioeconomic challenges, and in this regard expressed SESRIC’s readiness, with its vast experience in initiating cooperation and collaboration, to support cooperation in rural development, especially through its capacity building and training programmes, study visits and workshops, in close coordination with rural development training centers of the Member Countries with regard to the implementation of the outcomes of this workshop.

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