Photo:©FAO

Ankara-What challenges do vulnerable agricultural communities face in accessing rural social protection, and how can social security be extended to those not covered by the system? This was the critical question a group of experts sought to answer at a workshop held on 5 May 2021. The participants included more than 40 stakeholders and representatives from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Delegation of the European Union to Turkey, European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, the Ministry of Family and Social Services, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, UN agencies (ILO, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNFPA and IOM) , Ankara University and the Ankara University Development Studies Research and Application Centre. The online event took place virtually on Zoom and was coordinated by FAO Turkey and Ankara University.

The meeting updated more than 190 participants on the social protection situation of Turkish and Syrian agricultural workers in Turkey and emphasized the importance of expanding the social security net to include people in dire need, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The workshop also provided an opportunity for representatives from the Government of Turkey, the European Union, UN agencies and other stakeholders to share their efforts, findings and suggestions to tackle the issue.

Moderated by Ayşegül Selışık, FAO Turkey Assistant Representative, the Workshop was opened by Viorel Gutu, Sub-regional Coordinator and FAO Representative in Turkey.  Libor Chlad, the EU Delegation to Turkey Counsellor and Head of Section of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey, Prof. Dr Necdet Ünüvar, the Rector of Ankara University, Ali Aybey, the General Director of the International Labour force at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Sencer Kiremitci, Head of Department of R&G inGeneral Directorate of Social Assistance at the Ministry of Family and Social Services, and Surur Kir, the Head of Department of Training and Extension at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry  presented their contributions and remarks on rural social protection from the point of their own institutional perspectives.

In his opening remarks, Viorel Gutu, FAO Sub-regional Coordinator for Centre Asia and FAO Representative in Turkey, stated that: “According to the FAO Turkey, 94 percent of Syrian refugees and 64 percent of Turkish people working in seasonal agriculture have struggled to find jobs during the pandemic, leaving many to adopt negative coping mechanisms including access to basic needs and services”.

The workshop highlighted the importance of formalizing agricultural work in order to facilitate social protection coverage of agricultural workers and farmers – a key means to alleviating poverty and hunger and maintaining food security. The workshop also highlighted the vital contribution of refugees and migrants to ensuring the continuity of food supplies in Turkey, on the basis that seasonal agricultural workers account for half of the labour supply in agriculture.

According to Ebru Öztüm Tümer, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Head of International Labour Force Policy, Agreements and Legislation Department, “more than 80 percent of the population in Turkey live in urban areas, and we are expecting an increase. Agricultural lands are shrinking, and farmers and workers are ageing.” The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has established a national strategy to help the agricultural sector respond to increasing rural needs, emphasizing the importance of the migrant workforce to meeting current needs. “We believe that migrants working in agriculture have contributed to the country’s development and play a key role in meeting the demands of labour in agriculture”, said Ali Aybey.

The Training and Extension Department of Agriculture highlighted the importance of female participation in the sector. While female workers represent 24% of the labour force, this figure does not reflect the actual proportion as women’s work in agriculture is unpaid. The Training and Extension Department is working to empower women by promoting female cooperatives and increasing the capacities – and thus the employability – of women workers. It is also working to empower female farmers and is advocating for social security support for women.

According to an evaluation FAO conducted in partnership with the Ankara University Development Studies Research & Application Centre, 55 percent of assessed Turkish agriculture workers stated that their situation had deteriorated after the Syrian refugee crisis, especially agricultural workers, confirming the view that Turkish rural communities have been significantly affected by the Syrian crisis. The EU counsellor Libor Chlad affirmed the willingness of the EU Delegation to Turkey to support the Government of Turkey and its partners, including FAO, in their efforts to improve the socio-economic integration of Syrians under Temporary Protection and vulnerable host communities, in order to alleviate hunger and poverty and ensure food security.

The discussion aimed to launch a national dialogue among key stakeholders and actors in rural and social protection sectors, in order to create inclusive policies and programmes to support the social protection of vulnerable rural groups. The dialogue feeds into FAO Turkey’s efforts under the Syrian Refugee Response Plan, and aims to better link the national and local governments with EU and non-governmental organizations, in order to build organizational capacities to cover more social security schemes.