TİKA's Vice President, Çevik, Made Talks in North Macedonia

Mahmut Çevik, Vice President of Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), made talks in the capital city of North Macedonia, Skopje.

Getting together with the principals of the elementary schools which provide education in Turkish in the country, in the Headquarters of the Union of Turkish Non-Governmental Organizations in Macedonia (MATÜSİTEB), Çevik delivered the technical materials provided within the scope of the project to develop the school's visual and IT infrastructure.

MATÜSİTEB President, Tahsin İbrahim and TİKA's Coordinator in Skopje, Mehmet Bayrak accompanied Çevik.

In his speech, Çevik thanked people who enabled Turkish people born in North Macedonia to get their natural right to Turkish education.

Pointing out that they contributed to the development of Turkish language and it becoming widespread with their cooperation with MATÜSİTEB, Çevik said: "TİKA started its official activities in 2005 and since then, for 19 years, with its nearly 1200 projects, helped this country to develop in every sector and area. Education projects aggregate in these 1200 projects. Hence, 31% of these nearly 1200 projects are investments for the education field."

Reminding the audience that they worked to build the corporate capacities of courses, in-service training institutions, pre-schools, elementary and vocational education fields, Çevik stated that they completed the construction and modifications of nearly 60 schools.

Çevik also stated that they provided education to 1,500 students by opening nearly 25 Turkish courses in 22 provinces with MATÜSİTEB's teachers and associations.

Mentioning that they will deliver projection and infrastructure materials to the schools, Çevik chats with the teachers later on.

MATÜSİTEB President, İbrahim, stated that there are more than 8 thousand students receiving education in Turkish and 549 Turkish teachers in North Macedonia.

Emphasizing that TİKA supports education along with many fields, İbrahim said: "With the building of elementary schools, modifications, training materials, the supports to students such as stationary, scholarships and school buses, Turkish education in North Macedonia became inviting."

The Balkans Writing Workshop Meetings Central Program

Çevik attended the Balkans Writing Workshop Meetings organized by the Writers Union of Balkans and the Writers Union of Eurasia with the coordination of MATÜSİTEB and the support of TİKA.

Making statements to press members, Çevik mentioned that the project they started to develop Turkish, to follow the steps of the poet and writers who were born in this country and served the Turkish language, to get to the same level as them and to educate new young writers to preserve the Turkish language is bringing results.

Çevik said: "The works of our young writers who attended this program were put together into a book and served to people. We hope that this project will continue."

Reminding that they organized this program for the first time in 2019, the President of the Writers Union of Eurasia, Yakup Ömeroğlu, stated that they aim to help young writers gain in literature and bring their talents forward.

Noting that the program received positive results and there are lots of talented youngers, Ömeroğlu said: "We took them in a two-year program. We publish the work they wrote in this two-year program in literary magazines. After two years, if their work reaches the volume of a book, we also publish them as a book."

Mentioning that the workshop has been successful for 4 years since 2019, the President of the Writers Union of Balkans, Mürteza Sulooca, said: "More than 20 trainees completed the workshop. Trainees published more than 30 of their original works."

Sulooca added that they will hold workshop demo programs in different provinces, high schools and associations in North Macedonia and Kosovo in the near future.