President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, "We have achieved a substantial amount of progress in the field of vocational and technical education in recent years. We have made vocational education appealing again by eradicating the injustices committed against these schools throughout the tutelage periods."
President Erdoğan sent a video message to the "Vocational Education Conference" organised under the coordination of the Ministry of National Education and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Starting his speech by wishing the Conference to be auspicious, President Erdoğan stated that education is one of the most powerful instruments of humanity for sustainable economic growth and overall development.
Reiterating that the right to access quality education is a universal human right, regardless of where the children live in the world, President Erdoğan stated that there are currently 27 million students in Türkiye, 19 million of whom are in primary and secondary education and 8 million in higher education.
Stating that they are mobilising all available resources to ensure that the children entrusted to us by our nation are raised in the best possible way, President Erdoğan continued as follows:
"With this understanding, we have elevated Türkiye to the status of an exemplary country in every regard in the last 20 years by allocating the largest share of the budget to education every year, doubling the number of our classrooms, appointing a total of 750 thousand new teachers, equipping our schools with modern technology, renewing our education curriculum with a libertarian understanding, enhancing the financial and personal rights of our teachers, in short, leaving no gaps in education. We have achieved a substantial amount of progress in the field of vocational and technical education in recent years. First, we have made vocational education appealing again by eradicating the injustices committed against these schools throughout the tutelage periods. Then, as a result of the strong collaborations that we established with the real sector, we provided our Vocational and Technical Anatolian High Schools with new opportunities. Thus, while our students were learning the profession in the field, they started to gain theoretical knowledge within the framework of the curricula prepared together with the sector."
Expressing that they observe the benefits of the close cooperation established with the sector not only in the education process but also in the employment opportunities of the students after graduation, President Erdoğan also stated that they involve students in the product development process with 55 research and development centres spread across Türkiye.
Pointing out that the number of registered products, which was only a few in the previous years, has reached 8,269 in 2022, President Erdoğan stressed that 74 of these products have been commercialised.
"We have compensated for years of neglect"
Reiterating that they have implemented important regulations at the end of 2021 in order to train apprentices, forepersons and masters needed by the labour market, President Erdoğan noted that with these regulations, 30 per cent of the net amount of the minimum wage paid to students every month is included within the scope of state support.
Reminding that they have increased the amount paid to 12th-grade students, who are forepersons, from 30 per cent to 50 per cent, President Erdoğan emphasised that they have strengthened the education of masters, forepersons and apprentices with the support mechanisms of the state.
In this context, President Erdoğan indicated that the number of apprentices and forepersons, which was only 159 thousand in vocational training centres, reached 1 million 100 thousand in a short period of one year. President Erdoğan added: "The dynamism we brought to vocational training led to significant improvements in women's employment as well. With these initiatives, which I can call quintessential, we have both compensated for the years of neglect in vocational education and gained a very important momentum within a short time."
Pointing out that he believes that the Vocational Education Conference, organised under the coordination of the Ministry of National Education and OECD, will be beneficial in sharing Türkiye's experiences as well as learning valuable ideas, President Erdoğan congratulated those who contributed to the organisation of the Conference and wished that the consultations to be held would be auspicious.