The local government of Gaziantep began addressing the city’s infrastructure deficiencies, however tourism and cultural heritage were mostly absent from the political agenda. Therefore, there were nearly no protection measures for the city’s cultural assets that were under pressure due to the increase in the city’s population. The neglect of cultural heritage sites turned them into places of rescue for homeless people and created a sense of insecurity for the population at large, women and children in particular.

The main goal of the policy is to mainstream local culture to sustain local development, based on three pillars:

1. Sustain cultural excellence in gastronomy, music and folk art to develop the city’s reputation;
2. Display cultural heritage to make it accessible to people;
3. Ensure accessibility by breaking down barriers to welcome visitors and vulnerable groups.

Specific goals are:

• Promote and protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage from various civilizations;
• Position culture as a pillar of sustainable development by promoting and preserving environment-friendly features of traditional cultural modes of production;
• Creating employment and sources of income for people and the city, and empowering people as producers and beneficiaries of culture;
• Promote a sustainable green economy through cultural tourism;
• Promote an enabling, accessible and secure environment for artisans, salespersons, residents and visitors;
• Empower vulnerable groups including women, youth, disabled, senior artisans and Syrian refugees as producers, performers and consumers of culture;
• Improve social cohesion and the city’s attractiveness.

Renovation
In total, 41 cultural assets were renovated, including the city’s castle, 18 inns, 10 mosques, 4 Turkish baths, and the Mevlevihane worship place for the Sufis. Renovations also included around 6 000 square-meter of awning construction, 2 476 building façade improvements, 600 shop façade’s standardization, automatic shutters for 600 shops, 23 street improvements, and 17,500 square-meter of pavement improvement.

Improvement of infrastructure and environmental design (Cultura Road Project)
The city’s castle and its surroundings were designed as the main arteries shaping the social, cultural, scientific and commercial life of Gaziantep. The policy acknowledges the Castles historical role and function, positioning the Castle as a hub with a trickle-down effect on surrounding avenues, streets and bazaars.

Museums and exhibitions
16 archaeological, culinary and folk-art museums and exhibitions were opened (such as Zeugma Archeological Museum), of which 7 are managed by the local government.

Skills building programmes
Approximately 234 programmes were conducted, aimed to strengthen human capital through inter-generational cooperation, capacity-building and vocational training programmes. More than 150,000 women, youth, disabled and Syrian refugees were trained, and approximately 5,000 shop owners, the unqualified labour force and senior artisans were supported. These activities targeted traditional knowledge and practices in gastronomy and folk-arts including jewellery, “Antep style” handicraft, copper and silver engraving, rug production, coloured cotton kerchief production (yemenicilik), clog production, traditional fabric weaving and more than 500 traditional food varieties from desserts to spices, as well as the protection of the local dialect (Gaziantep ağzı).

Advocacy, visibility and outreach
More than 30,000 catalogues and brochures were produced and disseminated annually, and more than 500 meetings, festivals and exhibitions were organized.

Other government partners include the Culture and Tourism Provincial Directorate, the National Education Provincial Directorate, the Environment and Urbanism Provincial Directorate and the Ministry of Development. Provincial level representatives of Ministries provided technical contributions and input for the fully-fledged implementation of the Policy.

Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality encourages the active participation of all relevant stakeholders in the initiative, including district local governments, through a platform that convenes on a regular basis to assess the impact of the policy from different perspectives. It brings together the necessary human, technical and financial resources, investment planning, lobby and advocacy activities.

More than acting as per a structured matrix, members of the platform base their evaluations on concrete implementation outcomes and challenges as well as feedback from the residents. The Citizen Assembly plays a particular role in this process.

The policy-making process was led by the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality with an inclusive multi-stakeholder approach, from planning to implementation and monitoring. Partner entities include Chamber of Artisans and Handicraftsmen, Chamber of Commerce, Union of Historical Cities, representatives of tourism entrepreneurs, restaurant owners and travel agents.

From 2007 to 2018, a series of actions were carried out, for a total budget of USD 52 million.

Impact on the local governement
Cultural policies acted as a catalyst for the local government, and the participatory approach prevented resistance from relevant stakeholders. Local government’s staff and other relevant stakeholders have significantly improved their management, planning and implementation capacities for cultural policies.

The revenue generated by the cultural activities that were implemented increased the city’s attractiveness and revenue sources. Throughout this project, the city of Gaziantep has become an open space for living, experiencing and producing culture, creating an environment where culture is a crucial pillar of sustainable local development.

Impact on culture and on local cultural actors
After the policy implementation, more than 15,000 jobs were created, with 4 000 entrepreneurs selling cultural products, and 1,000 enterprises specialised in the cultural sectors (including catering and hotels). Cultural tourism, as a sector of the green economy, has become an important source of revenue for the City. The number of tourists from the country and abroad increased ten-fold to reach 623,000 by the end of 2017, with approximately 370,000 museums’ visitors by 2017.

Due to the inclusive multi-stakeholder approach adopted from the design stage, all relevant stakeholders showed a high commitment and ownership of the Policy. Whereas entrepreneurs first expressed frustration due to the rise in rents, it faded quickly in view of concrete high returns generated in terms of tourists and visitors.

Impact on the territory and population
Mainstreaming culture promotes a more inclusive and resilient society as it diminishes/decreases the risks of exclusion and marginalization caused by lack of employment, interaction and dialogue. Different platforms were arranged where music, culinary and handicrafts co-exist in harmony within the city, and are displayed and shared with the population, benefitting in particular the most vulnerable groups. This environment enabled the peaceful integration of a hundred thousand Syrian refugees, who could find a space in the city to share their cultural assets, and assets and could access various skills-building programmes.

The policy targets Gaziantep population at large, approximately two million people, from artisans and handicrafts persons to tourism agents including hotel owners, entrepreneurs and travel agents and entrepreneurs of catering services. It particularly highlights the crucial role played by women in the preservation and transfer of traditional knowledge, through the creation of dedicated fora where they can share their creative productions. Finally, the policy acknowledges that the environment is an indispensable part of the cultural ecosystem.

The project was a candidate for the third UCLG Mexico City – Culture 21 International Award (November 2017 – May 2018). The jury for the award drew up its final report in June 2016 and requested that the Committee on Culture promote this project as one of the good practices to be implemented through Agenda 21 for culture.

Measures to prevent harm to cultural heritage assets, especially due to the sudden influx of Syrian refugees, have sometimes created tension during policy implementation. The City also had to face a shortage in qualified human capital in different sectors, particularly during high seasons. However, the city managed to address both problems through protection measures and rapid short-term skills building programmes.

Composed of numerous civil society and community-based organizations (CSO/CBO), the Citizen’s Assembly enables residents to express their expectations, needs and observations on the policy directly to the local government. As a result, unforeseen negative results are immediately identified and addressed.

The policy owes its effectiveness to the following key aspects:

• Inclusive multi-stakeholder approach that engages all relevant actors from the very beginning. These stakeholders are aware of the potential impacts and possible repercussions of the policy on different segments, which enables them to develop proactive responses.
• Holistic approach of culture in the functioning of the city, by positioning it as a pillar of sustainable development along with economic, social and environmental dimensions.
• Immediate and concrete impacts on the people, particularly vulnerable groups, the city and the region. The observation and analysis of these concrete results act as the trigger for the implementation process.
• Attention paid to inclusiveness is instrumental to integrate the incoming Syrian refugee population.
• Promotion of inter-generational cooperation in the transfer of traditional knowledge and recognition of environment as an indispensable part of the cultural ecosystem.

Starting from its planning in mid-2000s, and regardless of turnovers in the organizational structure, the policy is being implemented with the same inclusive and holistic approach until now. The renovated cultural heritage assets and buildings represent today vital organizational structures, ensuring sustainability and continuity throughout the supply and demand chain of the policy.

From a financial perspective, the policy proved self-sustainable, owing to the value-added created by the cultural activities and creative productions.

Progressively, the City of Gaziantep has built stronger capacity regarding the protection and promotion of cultural heritage. Finally, thanks to the scrutiny of the local government-led platform, the evolving needs of the market are rapidly identified and programmes are rearranged accordingly.

Mainstreaming Culture for Sustainable Development at: Agenda 21 for culture UCLG Committee on Culture Website