University leads to EU with economic research

Founded in 1997 following the 1995 Barcelona Summit, the Economic Research Center on Mediterranean Countries at Akdeniz University conducts scientific research on Mediterranean countries and occupies an important position in the promotion of relations among countries in the region.

Other fields of activity at the center, founded by a member of the faculty of economics and administrative sciences, Yavuz Tekelioğlu, include handling development problems of Mediterranean countries and dealing with the integration process of the European Union. The center provides professional consultancy at both local and national levels and develops multidisciplinary research projects, concerning the Europe-Mediterranean partnership and undertaken by experienced academic staff, ensuring domestic and international funds support these projects.

Tekelioğlu earned his doctoral degree in France and then worked at the Hacettepe University in Ankara for 18 years before being appointed by the Higher Education Board, or Y?K, to found the faculty of economics and administrative sciences at Akdeniz University in 1995. Tekelioğlu agrees the Economic Research Center on Mediterranean Countries is an outcome of a network he has formed over 30 years both in Turkey and abroad.

"We have decided to form this center because of the Mediterranean identity of Antalya and Turkey," said Tekelioğlu, who also said the Mediterranean region is the future of Turkey and of the world.

Project on local products
Speaking about the project on local Mediterranean products, Tekelioğlu said the aim is to study the emergence of geographical indications and different methods of protecting them. Tekelioğlu also said the project, conducted by the Montpellier Mediterranean Agriculture Institute in France, and financed by Prime Ministry's Publicity Fund and International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies in Paris, is among the most important projects the center has undertaken so far.

"What gives a product its character is the region it is produced in. This not only includes soil structure, humidity and sun but also the traditions, culture and history of a given region. Bordo's wines, Malatya's apricots, Mersin's delight and Ezine's cheese are the best examples of that."

The Turkish Patent Institute has registered a total of 97 products so far. Anamur's bananas are among them while Finike's oranges are still under examination. "Local products are of great importance for rural development in a country. We are fortunate enough to live in a country rich in these products, as a result of the microclimates which differ even within a region and also of our cultural heritage," Tekelioğlu said.

On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the founding of the faculty at Akdeniz University, and with a view to extending research projects and networks for international cooperation, the university and the Montpellier Mediterranean Agriculture Institute organized an international seminar, "Local Agriculture, Sustainable Development and the Protection of Geographical Indications in the Mediterranean countries," which took place from April 24 to 26 in Antalya.

The seminar brought together over 100 participants from more than 10 Mediterranean countries in Europe and northern Asia, as well as international, governmental and nongovernmental organizations. The aim of the seminar was to promote the sustainable development of rural economies and propose a combined action plan based on the creation of a collective sign to designate authentic agricultural and food products from the Mediterranean Basin.

A fundamental outcome of this seminar was the Antalya Declaration, very important in terms of promoting links between the quality of agricultural products and the geographical origin of the Mediterranean Basin. This will improve the income of the farmers, achieve a better balance between supply and demand in markets, preserve and transmit the culinary heritage of the basin and provide for the cooperative management of rural economies.

"Papers presented at the seminar will be collected in a book and published by the center both in French and in Turkish," Tekelioğlu said.