The Ministers of Internal Affairs and Agriculture attended the “Coordination Meeting with the Governors of Provinces at Risk in Forest Fires” at the Fire Management Center of the General Directorate of Forestry, in which the governors of 30 provinces also participated. Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, İbrahim Yumaklı, stated that they are increasing their fire-fighting capability and capacity day by day and said, “This year, we will be fighting forest fires with 28 aircraft, 119 helicopters and 14 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). With our 15 aircraft, our aerial intervention capacity has increased to 462 tons of water. The number of forest personnel increased from 25 thousand to 28 thousand. More than 138 thousand forest volunteers supported the process.” “He will give it,” he said. Regarding the fight against forest fires, Minister of Internal Affairs Mustafa Çiftçi said, “Our goal is clear, to prevail a strong preventive approach that reduces the risk before the fire starts, prevents negligence and keeps the area under constant control.”

TWO FEARING FIRES
A 14-hectare afforestation area and maquis area burned down in the fire that started the previous evening in Beykoz, Istanbul, and was brought under control at night. The fire that broke out yesterday at noon in Yukarı Yakacık District of Aydın Nazilli was taken under control before it got bigger. 7 decares of larch forest were damaged in the fire. MUSTAFA BAKIRHAN-CEYHAN TORLAK/SABAH

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke at the 6th OECD Skills Summit organized by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) at the Haliç Congress Center:

THE MEMORIES ARE BEING BREAKING IN EMPLOYMENT: We are in a period when developing common solutions to the common challenges of humanity is more critical than ever before. We are witnessing that the rules are being disrupted, especially in the field of employment. In parallel with the developments in technology, production methods are changing and professions are transforming; While some jobs become obsolete, new job areas emerge. It is understood that the factor that will determine the success of countries in the current period will be the quality of human capital. Our greatest human capital is our youth.

WE REDUCED UNREGISTERED EMPLOYMENT BY UP TO 24 PERCENT: We made a very important convenience available to women with a law passed in our Parliament last week. With the new regulations, we increased the maternity leave duration of all working mothers to 24 weeks. Likewise, we have mobilized all our resources for the education and employment of our young people. Since we took office, we have allocated the lion’s share of the budget to education every year. We have made vocational education, which was pushed into the background in the days when democracy was suspended, a center of attraction again. In this process, we prepare our young people for the professions of the future with various programs and increase the connection of our educational institutions with the business world. “Youth’s Production Age Power Program”, which we shared with the public on January 6, is one of them. With this program, we will offer new supports to our youth and employers in many areas, from internship opportunities to skill acquisition, from vocational guidance to wage supports. Our goal is to employ 3 million young people in the next 3 years.

We will have adapted the master-apprentice relationship, which has shaped our working lives for centuries, to today’s conditions. Dear guests, our government approaches the topics to be discussed at the summit with a strong political will and a long-term perspective. In line with our human-centered development approach, we continue our reforms in every field, from education to employment, from labor policies to social protection. In an increasingly digital world, known working models are undergoing a radical change. While this process creates new job opportunities, it also increases the risk of employment shifting to unregistered areas. But thanks to the measures we have taken, we have achieved significant success in the fight against unregistered employment in the last 23 years. We managed to reduce the unregistered employment rate, which was over 52 percent in the early 2000s, to 24 percent by 2025.

40 COUNTRIES PARTICIPATED AT THE MINISTER LEVEL
While 64 countries and international organizations were invited to the summit organized by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development at the Haliç Congress Center in Istanbul, approximately 40 countries were represented at the minister and deputy minister level. At the summit, the effects of technological transformation, especially informatics and artificial intelligence, on labor markets, the skills of the future and the adaptation of education systems to this change were discussed. Minister of Labor and Social Security Vedat Işıkhan and OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann also made speeches in the program. Minister Işıkhan presented President Erdoğan with a special rosary from the “Drop Amber” collection embroidered with Ottoman motifs. The program ended with a family photo.

ERDOĞAN RECEIVED THE OECD SECRETARY GENERAL
President Erdoğan received OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann, who was in Istanbul for the ‘OECD 2026 Skills Summit’, at the Haliç Congress Center. At the reception, Minister of Labor and Social Security Prof. Dr. Vedat Işıkhan and Minister of National Education Yusuf Tekin were also present.

IT IS IN OUR HANDS TO READ THE CHANGE CORRECTLY

Our world is going through a sharp transformation process led by technology and artificial intelligence. Of course, our academics calculate in a multidimensional way what this change has gained and lost for humanity. It is impossible to stop this wave of change that drags everything in its path. But it is in our hands to read the change correctly, direct it correctly and manage it in a healthy way.

OUR FAMILY TIES ARE STILL ALIVE

According to OECD evaluations, aging is increasing in many countries. In 2030, one fifth of the world’s population will be people aged 60 and over. Excessive individualization and the dissolution of the traditional family structure is a serious problem. Thank God, our country is in a very good place in this regard compared to many countries in the world. The fact that our family ties are still alive and the culture of cooperation and solidarity is still strong provides us with a significant advantage.

HE WATCHED ‘MAKING A MAN’

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the screening of the cinema adaptation of Necip Fazıl Kısakürek’s cult work “To Create a Man” in Istanbul. The production, which was implemented with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, attracted great attention from the art circles. Erdoğan and his wife Emine Erdoğan, as well as many names from the world of art and politics, attended the screening held at the Atatürk Cultural Center. The production, which is considered the first work of Kısakürek’s mastery in theater writing, also received great acclaim with its cinema adaptation. “Creating a Man” will be released across Türkiye as of Friday.

IT TELLS THE SPIRITUAL ORDER OF A THEATER WRITER
The movie “Creating a Man” was adapted from the theater play of the same name by Necip Fazıl Kısakürek, one of the important names of Turkish literature. The film, directed by Murat Çeri, was awarded at the Chennai International Film Festival. The production deals with the human creation process, the concepts of conscience, responsibility and destiny with a psychological depth, with its narrative centering on the conflict between artist identity and individual existence.

Engin Altan Düzyatan, the leading actor of “Creating a Man”, in which a theater text is reinterpreted in the language of contemporary cinema, was deemed worthy of the Best Actor Award at the 13th Boğaziçi Film Festival. “Creating a Man” is a three-act play written by Kısakürek in 1937. The work, through Kısakürek’s narration, tells the story of a theater writer’s great mental ordeal. The work, which touches on the topics of fear of death, the suffering of art, fate and insanity, takes place in Istanbul on an unknown date. The work was staged for the first time by Istanbul City Theaters in the 1937-1938 season, with Muhsin Ertuğrul playing the leading role. It was shot as a TV movie by Yücel Çakmaklı in 1978.

Issues related to the agenda will be discussed at the AK Party Central Executive Board, which will meet today under the chairmanship of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Armed attacks at schools in Şanlıurfa and Kahramanmaraş are at the top of the agenda.

MEASURES WILL BE TAKEN AGAINST ATTACKS

The reasons for the attacks will be discussed comprehensively, and new measures to increase security in schools will be evaluated in detail. It is expected that additional measures, especially for the protection of young people, will be emphasized. New steps that can be taken to protect children from the dangers of the digital world will also be on the AK Party’s agenda after the school attacks.

ANOTHER AGENDA ITEM IS TERROROR-FREE Türkiye

On the other hand, the latest situation in the Terror-Free Türkiye process is among the important topics of the meeting. Developments regarding the disarmament process of the terrorist organization PKK and the current stage of legal regulations that will support this process will be evaluated. The timetable and steps to be taken regarding the speed of the process are also expected to be discussed.

Minister of Family and Social Services Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş met with media representatives in Ankara. Göktaş gave comprehensive information about efforts to protect children and families. Göktaş said, “We are creating a digital shield with all the work we do. The digital world is an uncontrolled area, while the driving license and voting age is 18, the age to enter social media is 6… In the past, the danger was on the streets, now the real danger is in our rooms at home. We must declare social mobilization to protect children in the digital world.” Göktaş said, “The family is our strongest castle, strengthening the household strengthens the society.” gave the message.

ATTACK AT THE SCHOOL IN KAHRAMANMARAŞ

Recent tragic events have shown that we need to be more vigilant than ever against all kinds of risks surrounding our children. We have created a 6-month action plan for now in the context of Psychosocial Support. As part of the process, we were on the field with 258 personnel.

We visited 6 thousand 75 households around the school and contacted 3 thousand 160 families directly. We assigned personnel who are experts in the field of grief counseling to the citizens affected by the incident. We assigned personnel specialized in grief counseling to our children and their families who were discharged from the hospital. In this process, we established a support reinforcement team and a neighborhood-based special team.

We are closely monitoring our 72 children who lost their parents in the earthquake and were affected by the latest incident. We are also carrying out a special study for these children. We established a Psychosocial Support (PSD) Meeting Office in the area where the school is located, within the Haydarbey Neighborhood Headman’s Office. In order to prevent such cases early, we started our field studies in 81 provinces simultaneously regarding our Social Risk map of Child Driving to Crime. We provided online training to 14 thousand 834 professionals within the scope of Social Risk Maps and Children Safe System. We strengthen our protective and preventive activities by scanning the field with all personnel.

SOCIAL MEDIA REGULATION FOR UNDER 15 YEARS OF AGE

It is very important that we regulate social media as a preventive measure. With this social service law, we created a digital shield for families. This is the first time in the history of the Ministry that such a comprehensive package has been issued, and for the first time we have an omnibus bill. At the same time, there is a very serious step towards protecting children. On the other hand, we are working to prevent similar incidents from occurring by expanding preventive measures and strengthening inter-institutional cooperation with our social risk maps. The will of the state is to support women, families and strengthen the family. To raise awareness about this issue not only in the family but also in the whole society.

WHILE THE AGE OF DRIVING LICENSE AND VOTING IS 18, THE AGE TO ENTER SOCIAL MEDIA IS 6

The digital world is an uncontrolled area, while the driving license and voting age is 18, the age to enter social media is 6…

In the past, the danger was on the streets, but now the real danger is in our rooms at home. When children sit quietly in their rooms, families think there is no problem. Now everyone has a phone, and families should set an example for children in this regard. We must declare social mobilization to protect children in the digital world. We cannot leave our children in the middle of a dark corridor.

DIGITAL FOOTPRINT CAN SERIOUSLY HARM CHILDREN

An action that children see as a simple and innocent game can have consequences that can negatively affect their lives later in life. Once they become criminally responsible, they may face serious penalties. Because social media and digital channels do not forget the digital footprint, they do not forget the visuals, they do not forget the pictures, they record them.”

The rapid development of digital technologies and the start of internet use at a very early age pose serious risks as well as opportunities. Harmful content, cyberbullying, inappropriate content in online games. Social media harms the mental, physical and psychological development of our children.

“Digitalization is one of the 5 main themes of our 2024-2028 Family Protection and Strengthening Vision Document and Action Plan. Digitalization is an integral part of our lives.

Our Action Plan for the Empowerment of Children in the Digital World. Many countries in the world have put this issue on the agenda. Australia has banned social media access for children under 16. We worked on a model specific to our country for about 1.5 years. It was also accepted in the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Our goal is to provide safer digital spaces for our children under the age of 15. In this context, we have imposed certain obligations on social network providers and game platforms. Will take necessary precautions, including age verification. Social networking providers and gaming platforms will offer parental control tools. Mechanisms that will enable them to respond effectively and quickly to complaints and applications, measures to prevent deceptive advertisements, a legal regulation that increases the responsibilities of digital platforms and protects our children from risks.

In Law No. 5651, game, game distributor, game developer and game platform will be defined. Game platforms will offer games by rating them in accordance with age criteria. Gaming platforms with more than 100 thousand daily access will have representatives in Türkiye. We also make regulations regarding VPN. We do not have a prohibitive attitude towards the gaming world. We act with an understanding that guides and supervises, not prohibits. Our main expectation is to have an institutional contact person to whom we can convey our demands. The sole purpose of our approach to games is to ensure the safety of our children. Our goal is not to ban technology; healthy use for our children, a national awareness and support ground that strengthens the guidance of families.

INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM THE RISKS OF THE DIGITAL WORLD

-The Digital Addiction and Family Workshop and the Children in the Digital World Workshops that we organized in 2024 formed the basis of our current global vision. Children, families and experts attended the workshops. We obtained striking data:
-The majority of our children spend 3 to 5 hours a day on digital media.
-The fun and competitive nature of games is the main factor that determines children’s playing time.
-Children’s focusing time is 8 seconds on average.
-The biggest danger is the removal of the age barrier. A 12-year-old child found himself with a 55-year-old adult at the beginning of the game.
-Children especially choose “stronger, darker and weapon-using” characters in games.
-While violent characters create the illusion of self-confidence in children, the anxiety of being watched pushes them towards social isolation.
-Vision and posture disorders, obesity, in front of the screen
-Excessive screen time causes brain decay, mental fog,
-Children see their success in games as superior to their success in real life.
-Parents say, we were not born into the digital world, we need digital literacy education.
-The biggest complaint of parents is communicating with each other by phone within the same house.
-Parents state that their children take social media influencers as more role models than themselves.
-With the results we obtained, we saw that it is not possible for a country to combat the lack of control in the digital world alone.
-We took the initiative we started to protect our children to a global dimension.

Türkiye IS A LEADER IN THESE ISSUES

-We discussed all measures, including our social media regulation, on an international cooperation basis. High-level participation from 21 countries, 13 of which were Minister level, with the honor of Mrs. Emine Erdoğan. Children were also included in the process at the meeting.
It has been a very important ground for increasing international awareness. A critical opportunity to advance multi-stakeholder cooperation,
-We published the joint final declaration in cooperation with our Ministry, UNICEF and the Special Representative of the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General on Violence Against Children. Using the age limit as a tool to protect children in the digital world has been evaluated by various countries around the world. The common will to ensure the safety of children on online platforms was emphasized. The need to determine stronger rights-based legal frameworks, to require digital service providers to take measures that can increase security, to strengthen integrated child protection systems that will support families, schools and child protection services, to carry out expanded digital literacy and awareness-raising activities, and to include children in the process as a part of the solution was emphasized.

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz attended the “Serbian National Day and Armed Forces Day Reception” held in a hotel.

“A COUNTRY OF KEY IMPORTANCE”

Stating that bilateral relations, built on the common history and deep-rooted cultural ties between the two countries, continue to strengthen on the basis of mutual trust and respect, Yılmaz said:

“We see Serbia as a country of key importance for the stability of the Balkans, we believe that Turkey-Serbian relations will produce positive results in the entire Balkans, and we express on various occasions the importance we attach to the development of our bilateral relations in all areas. The visit of Serbian President Mr. Vucic to our country on February 12, 2026 was an important step that strengthened the relations between our countries. In this regard, Antalya Diplomacy “During my meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr. Macut, whom I had the opportunity to host within the scope of the forum, we discussed the joint work that can be done to further strengthen our bilateral relations. We agreed with the Prime Minister to extend our cooperation to academic and scientific fields and to organize an event that will bring together experts from the two countries.”

“THERE WILL BE STRONG PARTICIPATION FROM OUR COUNTRY IN EXPO 2027”

Yılmaz stated that they have left behind an extremely productive and meaningful year in terms of Türkiye-Serbia relations, strengthened by high-level contacts, and said:

“We are following with interest your preparations for Expo 2027, which will be hosted by Serbia next year. There will be a strong participation from our country in the fair, which will provide opportunities for the strengthening of our bilateral commercial and cultural relations. Our economic and commercial relations constitute the locomotive of our bilateral cooperation. We are taking firm steps to increase our trade volume, which reached 3.4 billion dollars in 2025, to 5 billion dollars, which is our common goal set by our Presidents. Our contracting companies “We are pleased that they have reached a business volume of 2 billion dollars in Serbia, and we reiterate our belief that we will increase this even further together.”

In the statement made by the Ministry of Health, it was stated that there were claims in some media and social media platforms that “hospitals are being sold” regarding the real estate list published in the Official Gazette.

It was stated in the statement that the allegations in question do not reflect the truth, and that the decision in question was aimed at the re-evaluation of immovable properties that were not actually used or had lost their function.

“THERE IS NO SELLING OF ANY PUBLIC HOSPITAL THAT PROVIDES HEALTH SERVICES”

In the statement, it was underlined that the real estate belonging to the institutions that are on the list and provide health services will be protected, and the following was noted:

“Only the idle parts of these immovable properties will be allocated and evaluated. As a matter of fact, the process is ongoing, and within the scope of final planning, it may be considered to continue the partial use of some immovable properties and exclude others from the scope. It is not possible to sell any public hospitals that provide health services. In the last 23 years, 27 city hospitals, 21 training and research hospitals, 760 state hospitals, 449 additional buildings, 128 oral and dental health centers and 151 thousand qualified bed capacity. “A strong vision that adds service and transforms the health infrastructure cannot have an approach such as disposing of an active health facility.”