Turkey has introduced major reforms to the basic education policy
Excerpts from the speech delivered today by Ambassador Marc Pierini, Head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Turkey, on the occasion of the Final Conference on Support to Basic Education in Turkey
Ankara, 27 November 2007
“Turkey has introduced major reforms to the basic education policy. We welcome and we support these reforms, in particular when it comes to improving the quality of basic education, to redressing imbalances between urban and rural areas, to reducing illiteracy, to improving the chances of girls, and also to improving the physical infrastructure. (…) We see these reforms as reforms designed and implemented by Turkey in her own interest. (…) The EU role is not to teach lessons, nor to impose a “model”, it is to share its experience and expertise in reform processes, in this case basic education. This what we have been doing in this programme.
(…) You may have noticed that during the past few weeks important progress has been achieved towards a better understanding between Turkey and the EU. (…) There is a much better understanding on the part of the EU institutions towards Turkey and about the overall context within which the accession negotiations - difficult negotiations by definition – are taking place. What do we see?
- First of all, we see a Turkey which is getting more prosperous, more modern by the day, probably more quickly than the EU citizen can see, perhaps also more quickly than the Turkish citizen can see. In this process, Turkey not only makes progress for herself, but also is getting closer and closer to the EU policies and standards.
- Second, we see a Turkey which is getting more democratic. The way in which the Turkish political system overcame the recent crisis was a remarkably smooth one. In itself, the exit from the political crisis meant a further maturing of the democratic rules and institutions of Turkey.
- Third, we see a Turkey which, amid great suffering, is now gradually heading towards a more open debate on the crucial issue of the development of the East and South East and on the issue of cultural rights, while at the same time exercising with responsibility its right to defend herself against terrorism.
(…) The programme which you are about to discuss today and tomorrow is important from all of the 3 perspectives I just mentioned: it is important for modernisation and rapprochement with the EU, it is important for democracy, it is important for reducing regional imbalances. And, together with other programmes in other fields, it is important because it demonstrates once again that the Turkey which is negotiating her accession to the EU is not today’s Turkey, it is tomorrow’s Turkey. This will be a Turkey where the economy and society will have modernised, prosperity and social cohesion will have increased, regional disparities will have diminished.
At the end of the process, Turkey will be stronger, so will the European Union. “
DELTUR/SECA(2007)D/5001
Last update: 29.11.2007