The Local Agenda 21 processes in Turkey were launched in late 1997 via the Project entitled “Promotion and Development of Local Agenda 21s in Turkey”, with the support of UNDP and under the coordination of IULAEMME– International Union of Local Authorities, Section for the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East Region. The project, commencing by the decision of the T.R. Council of Ministers, was completed in December 1999 following a period of nearly two years of implementation. Building upon the achievements of this project, UNDP supported the continuation Project. entitled “Implementing Local Agenda 21s in Turkey”, which started in January 2000 with the consent of the T.R. Council of Ministers. By virtue of the incorporation of a number of sub-projects, coupled with the inclusion of new local authorities to attain over 50 partners, the project framework of LA-21 was converted into a long-range “Program”.

The various phases and sub-projects of the Turkey Local Agenda 21 Program have beensupported by the corresponding decisions of  the T.R. Council of Ministers and have been published in the Official Gazette of Turkey (dated 6 March 1998, 8 February 1999, 22 January 2001, 4 December 2001, 11 June 2003 and 12 November 2003 respectively.) The Decrees dated 19 March 1998 and 7

November 2000, issued consecutively by the Ministry of Interior to overcome a number of bottlenecks encountered during various stages of implementation, have made a significant

contribution to the development of Local Agenda 21 processes. The third phase of the LA-21 Program encompasses a number of intertwined and mutually- supporting projects. Within the context of the first project entitled “Establishing a Sustainable Network to Promote Local Democratic Governance in Turkey” (supported by UNDP Democratic Governance Thematic Trust

Fund), the existing web site was developed into a more user-friendly and interactive format and the nation-wide “Local Agenda 21 Governance Network” was established. Within the context of the second project entitled “Enhancing the Role of the Women and the Youth in Local Partnerships and Networking for Transparency” (supported by the MATRA Program of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs), activities have been conducted with a special focus on increasing the participation of women and youth in local decisionmaking processes and in all aspects of local

governance. The framework project of the third phase isentitled “Localizing the UN Millennium Development Goals and WSSD Plan of Implementation through the Turkey Local Agenda 21 Governance Network”. This project aims at increasing the support of the central government and to

augment the visibility of LA-21 via making a substantial impact in localizing the respective global targets and actions. A small grants program entitled “Supporting Local Projects” has also been launched within the context of the project.

 www.bursayg21.org