Photo:©FAO

Ankara - The 4th Steering Committee meeting was held for the Project for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Turkey's Steppe Ecosystems, which is conducted by partnership of FAO, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), the General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks (GDNCNP), the General Directorate of Plant Production (GDPP), and the General Directorate of Forestry (GDF), with the financial support of the Global Environment Facility. The Zoom meeting was held on 17 April 2020, hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and moderated by the Deputy Minister Akif Özkaldı. The project is implemented in Kızılkuyu Wildlife Development Site, Tek Tek Mountains National Park, and Karacadağ Steppe in Şanlıurfa.

The attendees of the meetings were: FAO's Subregional Coordinator for Central Asia and FAO Representative for Turkey Viorel Gutu; Assistant FAO Representative for Turkey Ayşegül Selışık; Şanlıurfa Deputy Governor Selami Işık; Director-General of Nature Conservation and National Parks İsmail Üzmez; Deputy Director-General of Plant Production Yasin Ahmet Dallı; Deputy Director-General of Forestry Mehmet Çelik; Deputy Director-General for EU & Foreign Relations Volkan Güngören; senior representatives from Şanlıurfa units of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry; Prof. Mehmet Ali Çullu from Harran University, representing the project's independent experts team; FAO representatives; and other organization representatives of the project.

Akif Özkaldı, Deputy Minister and Head of Steering Committee, started the meeting with his opening remarks. Özkaldı emphasized the importance of integrating the project results into other works conducted by the Ministry. FAO's Subregional Coordinator for Central Asia and FAO Representative for Turkey Viorel Gutu underlined that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected all countries, organizations, and individuals in many ways recently, and that everyone tries to adapt to this new way of living with the new ways of work. He stated that he was pleased to have the 4th steering committee meeting with many stakeholders participating so that ongoing works are not interrupted despite all the challenges. He indicated that the Ministry places importance on the project and that they believe the project will contribute greatly to the conservation and sustainable management of Turkey's steppe ecosystems. He said that the project is highly embraced by all. 

The project coordinator Nihan Yenilmez Arpa presented the works completed in 2019 within the scope of the project, results and outputs, and the 2020 action plan and budget. Additionally, she informed the committee members about advancements, outcomes, and upcoming activities.

The Steering Committee meeting, which took around 3.5 hours, was held online without interruption thanks to the efforts of project stakeholders. Meeting decisions included that the project will be extended to June 2022, all activities as part of the project will be continued in cooperation with the partners, and an applicable protection status will be determined for Karacadağ steppes, which are among the pilot areas of the project. Also, it was decided that the planning, monitoring, and awareness-raising works will be started in the pilot areas, and that the 2020 budget and working plan will be implemented as approved.