The Local Equality Action Plan (LEAP) Preparatory Workshop, organised by Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality in cooperation with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Women-Friendly Cities Programme, has begun. The workshop will focus on identifying the problems, inequalities and needs faced by women and girls across the city, assessing their access to municipal services and developing proposals to address these issues.

As part of the work led by the Department of Women’s Policies, the workshop will address both the municipality’s existing services and new services and initiatives that are needed.

The workshop, held at a hotel, was attended by Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality Co-Mayor Serra Bucak; Council Co-Spokespersons Demet Ceylan and Ayhan Karatekin; Deputy Chief Executive Zerin Türk; heads of departments; representatives of civil society organisations; and academics.

Emphasis on women’s participation in decision-making

Speaking at the workshop, Head of the Department of Women’s Policies Özden Gürbüz Sümer said that one of the municipality’s key objectives, as it continues its work from a perspective of women’s liberation, democratic and ecological local governance, was to develop policies that would enable women to feel free, safe and equal in the city. She added that they also considered it essential to establish mechanisms ensuring women’s active participation in decision-making processes when developing these policies. Sümer expressed her satisfaction at taking part in the Women-Friendly Cities Programme, which seeks to reassess urban rights from a gender equality perspective.

Partnership established with 11 civil society organisations

Noting that significant progress had been made since May 2025 under the programme, Sümer said that partnerships had been established with 11 civil society organisations, enabling the implementation of local equality mechanisms, one of the programme’s key components.

She stated that an Equality Unit and an Equality Board had been established within the municipality, while equality desks had been set up in the departments. Sümer also noted that comprehensive training sessions had been held in preparation for the Local Equality Action Plan. Following the training, an intensive preparation process had begun, and the workshop was being organised as a result of this process and the collective effort involved.

Equality perspective to be integrated into planning and budgeting

Sümer said they regarded the LEAP as an important planning and monitoring tool for integrating a gender equality perspective into all relevant municipal services, as well as into planning and budgeting processes.

She explained that the aim of the preparatory process was to bring together the university’s academic expertise, the field experience and rights-based advocacy of civil society organisations, the institutional resources of the public sector and women’s own experiences as active agents. Sümer expressed her belief that the workshop would provide a productive platform for collaborative work.

Beginning her speech by greeting the guests, colleagues, representatives of civil society organisations and women’s institutions, as well as women working in the women’s departments of district municipalities and in the fields of combating violence against women, education and employment, Co-Mayor Serra Bucak thanked the Women-Friendly Cities Programme team and its local representative for their joint efforts throughout the process.

‘It is an important component of democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory plans’

Referring to the assessments made regarding the programme’s content, objectives, scope and intersectionality, Co-Mayor Bucak said that the Women-Friendly Cities Programme and the Local Equality Action Plan formed part of the work being carried out across the city. She stated: “For us, the Women-Friendly Cities Programme and the Local Equality Action Plan are important components of all the democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory plans that this city has pursued to date.”

Co-Mayor Bucak added that the programme was also an important part of the organised women's liberation struggle carried out in the city to date, as well as efforts to increase women's visibility and combat violence against women.

She said that when Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality joined the Women-Friendly Cities Programme, they were aware that the city’s various stakeholders, local government staff working in the field of women’s rights and those responsible for implementing women’s policies were already well prepared in many respects. Noting that they had carried out important work in close cooperation with the UN team and its local representatives, she thanked everyone who had contributed.

‘We regard this workshop as a significant stage and milestone’

Stating that they regarded the Local Equality Action Plan Preparatory Workshop as a significant stage and milestone for the Women-Friendly Cities Programme, Co-Mayor Bucak said that participants’ contributions would be decisive in strengthening the plan and ensuring its implementation.

Co-Mayor Bucak said: “I would like to thank all those who will bring their efforts, ideas, voices and experiences to these working sessions and support the strengthening of this plan and its implementation in the period ahead.”

Equal and active participation of women in urban life

Stating that supporting women's equal and active participation in urban life was no easy task, Co-Mayor Bucak emphasised the importance of the policies, ideas and proposals developed in this field.

She stressed the need to ensure that women had equal and safe access to education, healthcare, employment, transport, social life and other urban services. She also noted that, alongside women's representation in local government decision-making bodies, their ability to express their views, have a say and exercise influence beyond formal representation must also be supported and strengthened.

Highlighting the importance of prioritising participatory, inclusive and egalitarian approaches in the planning and delivery of municipal services, and extending the methods that underpin them, Co-Mayor Bucak said that protecting women's rights and combating gender-based discrimination must become fundamental elements of local government policies. She added that methods and forms of action to combat all forms of discrimination against women were among the programme's priorities and helped define its character.

‘We have rebuilt the areas that were damaged, making them much stronger’

Stating that they had made progress together with women in many areas in Diyarbakır, Co-Mayor Bucak said that they had carried the organised women's struggle forward from 1999 to the present day. She said: “We have rebuilt, and made much stronger, the spaces that were damaged, shut down and disregarded during the eight-year trustee administration.”

Noting that building solidarity against central government policies that disregard and marginalise women, and place obstacles in the way of their participation in public life, local government, social life, education and employment, was no easy task, Co-Mayor Bucak said that the period ahead would also bring challenges.

She stated that, as the organised women's struggle continued to develop and grow, an approach seeking to ignore this struggle and obstruct its progress persisted in the form of what she described as “male institutionalisation”. She continued:

“If this were not the case, we would not be witnessing such a bleak picture today with regard to violence against women and femicides, both in our city and across Türkiye. I would like to emphasise here that we must continue our work and policies in this area in a coordinated manner under the Women-Friendly Cities Programme.”
‘We must also consider and discuss social peace together’

Addressing the Peace and Democratic Society Process in her speech, Co-Mayor Bucak emphasised that social peace must also be considered wherever women are free to express themselves, make their voices heard, demand the rights they are entitled to as women, and seek to establish, discuss and exercise those rights in society.

Co-Mayor Bucak stated: “In the process we are going through – a process of social peace, a democratic society and peacebuilding – we know how important it is to bring together peace and women, peace and women-centred emancipatory policies, and peace and an egalitarian society.”

Noting that examples from other parts of the world also demonstrated this, Co-Mayor Bucak said that discrimination against women, violence and unequal policies were accompanied by increasing political oppression. She added that this reflected a reality in which those in power had abandoned policies of peace, understanding and dialogue with society. She said they wanted to make social peace in their country and cities, and the pursuit of a society free from violence, exploitation and discrimination, or where such practices were reduced to a minimum, a concern for all sections of society, starting with women's organisations, and to bring these issues into public debate.

Emphasis on peace in the Local Equality Action Plan

Stating that the Local Equality Action Plan must be considered in conjunction with the building of social peace, Co-Mayor Bucak said:

“For this reason, we must also turn the Local Equality Action Plan into an instrument for establishing peace and a policy for peace. We must recognise that building social peace means putting into practice, together with women and with women at its centre, an egalitarian policy that takes women's emancipatory perspective as its basis.”

Noting that the workshop would address a wide range of issues, from education and gender-based violence and discrimination to healthcare, the economy, urban services and other policy areas, Co-Mayor Bucak said that the discussions would also shape hopes for peace in the future.

Co-Mayor Bucak stated: “As you discuss all these approaches to the Local Equality Action Plan here today, at this workshop and around these tables, you will also be shaping our own peace, our social peace and our hopes for peace in the future.”

Thanks to all those contributing to the workshop

Thanking everyone for their contributions and efforts, Co-Mayor Bucak wished the Department of Women’s Policies, the Local Equality Unit, her colleagues and all the committees to be established in the next stages every success.

She concluded her speech by thanking the women's departments of district municipalities, women working in the fields of combating violence against women, education and employment, and representatives of the United Nations.

First Local Equality Action Plan targeted for completion by the end of the year

Speaking at the workshop, Naz Hıdır, Regional Field Coordinator for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) Türkiye Women-Friendly Cities Programme, said that an important milestone had been reached in cooperation with Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality. She thanked everyone who had contributed throughout the process, particularly the Department of Women’s Policies, the Equality Unit, equality desks, the Equality Commission and the Equality Board.

Stating that, with the technical support of the Women-Friendly Cities Programme, they aimed to prepare the municipality's first Local Equality Action Plan before the end of 2026, Hıdır said that the work carried out so far indicated that this target would be achieved. She emphasised that the local plan would be developed with contributions from experts and civil society representatives with the strongest understanding of local needs.

Issues and solutions to be discussed across six thematic areas

Following the opening speeches, the programme will continue with a presentation by UNFPA representatives on the Women-Friendly Cities III Programme, followed by an outline of the objectives of the Local Equality Action Plan and its preparatory stages.

Group work will be carried out across six thematic tables in two main sessions. The discussions will cover “Economic Empowerment and Employment”, “Health”, “Education”, “Urban Services”, “Representation and Participation”, and “Gender-Based Violence and Discrimination”.

The first half of the day will focus on analysing the current situation and identifying existing problems. Afternoon sessions will address concrete proposals for solutions, the municipality's role and performance indicators to be used in monitoring implementation. The workshop will conclude with an evaluation of the outcomes and a closing session.