Rural Development Program - Hüsnü Özyeğin Vakfı

The Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation implements a comprehensive Rural Development Program predicated on the principle that "the right to development is a fundamental human right”. This program employs an integrated, human-centered, gender-equitable, and pro-poor methodology, which is consistently applied throughout all stages, from planning to execution. Program activities are collaboratively designed with relevant institutions and community members, with the objective of equipping individuals with the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to foster sustainable progress in rural communities.
The Foundation's Rural Development Program comprises seven interconnected components, reflecting a holistic development strategy. This strategy encompasses initiatives focused on economic and social welfare enhancement, environmental sustainability, women's empowerment, infrastructure development, strategic partnerships, and organizational capacity building to ensure long-term program viability. The program aims to influence rural policies through the establishment of enduring structures.

Rural Development Final Report

Kavar Basin Rural Development Project

The Kavar Basin Rural Development Project was initiated in 2009 with preliminary field studies conducted in the Kavar Basin, encompassing 6 villages and 5 hamlets within the Tatvan district of Bitlis, and affecting a population of 2,000 residents. The Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation executed the project from 2009 to 2015, incorporating extensive field operations and continuing support through consultancy services to the Kavar Cooperative. Comprising numerous sub-projects and activities, the Kavar Basin Rural Development Project has significantly contributed to the field of rural development. Its innovative approaches, including a focus on ecology, women's empowerment, social welfare, a community-based strategy, and the direct engagement of local populations in planning and implementation, distinguish the project. The project's quantitative and qualitative impact assessment report remains a valuable resource, representing a notable example in the field.

Rural Development Program Final Impact Evaluation Report

Ravanda Basin Rural Development Project

The second rural development program, initiated in 2012 within the Ravanda Basin, targeted a population of 2,200 residents across 8 villages in the Polateli and Musabeyli districts of Kilis. Concluded in 2019, the Ravanda Rural Development Project was strategically designed as a rural development initiative with a specific focus on women's empowerment. The Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation continues to provide consultancy services to the Ravandalı Women's Association. The Ravanda Basin Rural Development Project, through its comprehensive approach to enhancing grape and olive production, promoting small-scale animal husbandry (key sectors of the regional economy), and improving overall social welfare, continues to generate significant and lasting positive impacts.

Ravanda Basin İmpact Evaluation Report

Students from Tokaçli village in Kavar have become “pen pals” with children from the low-income uptown neighborhood of Chicago through a joint project titled “Bridge: Chicago-Kavar Pen Pal Project.” The children exchange letters to form cross-cultural friendships.

The mission of Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation is to develop models that focus on empowering rural communities in the field, to steer rural development policies and contribute to their formulation and to support this process with academic work and with partnerships.

KAVAR AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT COOPERATIVE

Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation believes that sustainability of the project depends on the fact that the beneficiaries have a say in the process of formulation and implementation of project activities. It is this participatory process that ensures the ownership of the project by the local community. The Kavar Agricultural Development Cooperative, which was established in 2011 after extensive community discussions, field trips to see best practices in other regions, and various trainings, is a typical successful example of this participatory approach.

RAVANDA WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION

As a part of Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation’s Ravanda Basin Rural Development Project, following more than two years of women’s organizing efforts, the women of Ravanda have come together to establish a women’s association in their village. Initially, the women participated in capacity-building sessions focused on community organization, covering topics such as the importance of organizing, mutual trust and openness, participation, and strategies for navigating success and failure. Product sales are conducted through the association’s website, with additional orders fulfilled via Good4Trust. Updates on the Ravanda Women's Association's activities are available on their website and social media channels.
http://www.ravandalikadinlar.com/

https://good4trust.org/ravandali_kadinlar
https://ravandalikadinlar.org/

Local and Rural Development Training Certificate Program
This certificate program offers a comprehensive exploration of alternative approaches and best practices in local and rural development, encompassing diverse thematic areas from gastronomy to rural tourism. Designed to equip participants with practical knowledge, the program effectively bridges the gap between academic theory and field application. With a proven track record of 11 years and 13 programs, we have empowered over 500 individuals through this initiative. The Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation and Özyeğin University have proudly hosted numerous academics, researchers, representatives from national and international non-governmental organizations, local administrators, and producer organization representatives, facilitating the sharing of invaluable knowledge and experience with participants. As a unique program of its kind, this certificate serves as a key reference point for professionals engaged in local and rural development across the public sector, academia, and civil society. Access to the content of all previously implemented certificate programs is available here.

Book: Local and Rural Development from the Perspective of Sustainable Living

Özyeğin University proudly presents "Local and Rural Development from the Perspective of Sustainable Living," a compilation of scholarly articles by academics from the Local and Rural Development Training Certificate programs. This publication, edited by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Faik Gür of Özyeğin University and Murat Bayramoğlu, Rural Development Program Manager, provides a comprehensive resource blending theoretical insights with practical applications. Comprising 24 articles and interviews organized into four thematic sections, this book addresses a significant need within Turkish literature concerning local and rural development. It is highly recommended as a key resource for university departments in related fields.

Empowering Rural Communities Through Social Procurement

Since 2013, the Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation has implemented New Year's Package purchases as a key initiative within the Kavar and Ravanda Basin Rural Development Projects, aimed at fostering sustainable income generation for women beneficiaries. Through this multifaceted approach, thousands of "Hope Exists in the Countryside!" New Year's packages, managed by the Kavar Cooperative and the Ravandalı Women's Association from production to delivery, are distributed annually to numerous companies, including Fiba Group and Özyeğin University. This ongoing practice represents a significant social procurement initiative in Türkiye, consistently enhancing the production, distribution, quality control, packaging, shipping, and accounting management skills of rural communities.

Report on the Kavar Basin Experience as a Sustainable Rural Development Model A report

The Kavar Basin Rural Development Project is proposed as a development model for broader implementation, prepared in conjunction with the Eastern Anatolia Development Agency. The Kavar Basin Rural Development Report, which outlines a sustainable rural development model, is informed by an extensive field study. This study assessed the feasibility of adopting the basin-based and community-based integrated rural development model, as implemented by the Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation in the TRB2 Region (Bitlis, Van, Hakkari, Muş).

Report on the Kavar Basin Experience as a Sustainable Rural Development Model A report

District Rural Development Investment Plans

Within the framework of the cooperation established between the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) Regional Development Administration, one of the largest development institutions in the country's public sector, the Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation, and Özyeğin University, district rural development investment plans have been prepared for Mardin/Ömerli, Adıyaman/Besni Districts, and the Kilis/Ravanda Basin. While prioritizing holistic and sustainable local development, the investment plans exemplify multi-sector cooperation with the active participation of universities, civil society, and public institutions.

In addition, 5-year investment plans for the Hasankeyf and Harran districts were prepared by the Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation.

Learning On-Site: Educational Trips to Project Sites with Özyeğin University Students

The Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation provides Özyeğin University students and faculty with invaluable opportunities for direct engagement with sustainable rural development initiatives. Annually, during the week of April 23rd, a cohort of students participates in visits to villages in Bitlis and Kilis, where the Foundation's rural development programs are active. These visits facilitate the assessment of needs in local schools, foster interaction between university students and village schoolchildren and adolescents, and contribute to the advancement of educational and mentorship programs.

School Has Arrived, Access to Education Provided in Rural Areas!

The foundation of an 8-classroom school, longed for for many years in the region including the villages within the Kavar Basin Project and surrounding villages, was laid with the participation of local people and children, and it was put into service in a short time. Hüsnü Özyeğin Secondary School has had a positive impact especially on the schooling rate of girls and the general quality of education.

Kavar Basin Living Conditions Improvement Center

The "Kavar Basin Living Conditions Improvement Center", which the Foundation brought to the Basin with the contribution of the Embassy of Japan, enabled the Basin villages, especially Kolbaşı village, to have the social facilities they needed for activities such as education, condolences, and meetings.

The Kavar Project was selected as one of the 25 innovative local development projects in Europe by "Reinventing Europe Through Local Initiative".
Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation was a member of the European Union Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance Rural Development Component - IPARD - Monitoring Committee until 2019.
Organization, good agricultural practices and marketing trainings were organized in the project villages with the EFSE – Finance in Motion (Germany) fund, which consists of the world's leading asset managers.
Training was given to more than 40 employees of Hakkari Provincial Directorate of Agriculture between April 23-26, 2015, including the basic concepts and sample implementations of local and rural development.

Post-Disaster Support Program

Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation mobilizes all its resources to understand and support the immediate and medium-term needs of rural communities whose lives are deeply affected after natural disasters such as fires, earthquakes, floods, and mass-impact disasters.

Hüsnü M. Özyeğin Foundation Was in Soma Villages After the Mine Disaster

Soma and Kınık districts and their affiliated villages were visited to observe rural development projects that could be implemented in the settlements of the miners, especially the families of the miners who lost their lives in the mine disaster in Soma District, and meetings were held with the mayor, the district director of agriculture, the headmen and the local people.

Empowering Rural Communities Through Social Procurement

Report on the Kavar Basin Experience as a Sustainable Rural Development Model A report

RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM GOALS ACHIEVED

Economic Development

50 % increase in revenue
Ensuring specialization in at least one crop in the basin
Decrease in seasonal migration for work
Increase in the use of new agricultural technology

Infrastructure

Provision of a sound sewage infrastructure
Provision of clean water for all households
Improvement of intra-village roads
Establishment of community spaces (village rooms)

Environment and Protection of Natural Resources

Increase in awareness and protection of biodiversity and natural resources
Protection of pasturelands and preservation of the ecosystem in Kavar
Preservation of traditional and natural means of production
Increase in eco-friendly farming practices

Rural Policies

Establishment of an independent monitoring system for impact-evaluation
Creating dialogue on rural poverty and rural development among NGOs, governmental agencies and academia
Attracting the attention of the private sector to issues of rural development and rural poverty.

Social Development

Increase in literacy ratios
Provision of early childhood education services
Increase in primary school graduation ratios and increased enrollment in secondary education
Increase access to basic health services
Decrease in prevalence of infectious diseases.

Women’s Empowerment

Increase in women’s literacy
Increase in the rate of visits to the hospital during pregnancy
Increase in hospital delivery rates
Increase in the use of vaccination registration cards
Increase in the regular use of modern methods of birth control.

Partnership and Collaboration

Doubling the project budget through public and third-party investment in Kavar
Increase in cooperation and partnership between Kavar community and the local government.