Local economic development, decentralisation and consensus building in Turkey

This study explores the prospects of decentralisation and consensus building within the context of local economic development in Turkey. The broad theoretical concern of this research is the tension between the centre and periphery in the governance structure of Turkey. Over 80 interviews from three rapidly growing medium-sized cities, Denizli, Gaziantep and Kayseri, indicate that considerable decentralisation in recent decades has enabled municipalities and local groups to formulate and realise local projects. However, detailed case studies from Kayseri illustrate both the importance of kinship and social ties in forming alliances and identifying priorities in local politics. Charismatic individuals play a crucial role in initiating and driving local projects. The experience of Kayseri in local economic development through local initiatives demonstrates the current battles among different civic groups, numerous economic interests, and the national party agendas of political leaders. udy concludes that decentralisation has to be considered together with enhancing participatory democracy in governance at the local and national levels in Turkey. This transformation can only be achieved with a strong and credible state. The importance of a strong and credible state is even greater in the absence of a supranational body like the European Union within which localities can co-operate and interact. Perhaps more importantly, in the wake of unpredictable distortions imposed on localities by the globalisation of economic and financial activities, localities need a safeguarding national and/or supra-national mechanism in governance as well as in policy design.