What changed
2026-07-30 13:54 UTC → 2026-08-05 20:36 UTC ·
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Since early May 2026 Turkey’s Culture and Tourism Ministry has driven continued a wave broad programme of restoration restoration, festivals and women‑focused vocational initiatives that spotlight traditional craft initiatives. In May, the ministry highlighted 5,970 completed restorations and empower women. Projects have revived launched projects to revive Ottoman‑era buildings, Seljuk bridges buildings in Ayvalık and historic mosques Istanbul’s 16th‑century Yalı Köşkü, while festivals Seljuk‑era sites such as the Murat Bridge in Mersin, Eskişehir and other provinces have showcased textiles, jewelry, wood‑carving, ebru, robotics, knitwear, embroidery, leather and macramé. Municipal programmes have added women’s craft festivals, vocational courses and heritage tours, linking vocational training to income generation Muş and cultural preservation. In mid‑July, the Halkkent MERCEK Vocational Training Center Meram Suriçi Çarşısı dome in Mersin exhibited hand‑made clothing and accessories created by 150 female trainees, many of whom have secured jobs or started home‑based workshops. Konya attracted growing visitor numbers. The same month, the municipal “Evimiz Atölye” project held historic Sungurbey Camii in Niğde reopened after a candle‑making workshop for 46 women from Yalınayak neighbourhood, teaching the full production process three‑year overhaul, and aiming to turn home‑based labour into economic value. Late July saw the Osmangazi medieval Çiğdemli village in Sivas was declared a protected heritage site despite roof‑collapse risks. Cultural‑route festivals expanded to new cities: Mersin hosted its first Turkey Culture Route Festival, Eskişehir launched its inaugural segment, and Bursa Metropolitan municipalities launch the Mersin’s Hamzabeyli village festival showcased women‑run cooperatives. Yıldırım (Bursa) held its 6th Traditional Handcraft Festival, while Bursa’s Kadın Girişimciler Sokağı and “Meydan Kadınların” solidarity markets in Üftade Square, where dozens of women displayed handmade jewellery, ceramics, textiles and other crafts across more than 50 stalls, drawing drew large crowds and supporting brand development. The markets are planned slated for replication elsewhere. Municipal vocational centres in Yeşilyurt, Gemlik, Bilecik, Ayvacık and Malatya provided free sewing, textile and leather‑craft courses, enabling participants to start home‑based workshops and earn certified income. Women’s craft exhibitions proliferated: Bilecik’s handmade‑clothing show, Ayvacık’s heritage‑fashion runway, Güzelyurt’s Hilal Mosque display, Şahinbey’s Gaziantep showcase, and Canik’s football‑themed exhibition all highlighted the economic impact of vocational training. Mobile entrepreneurship training reached Erzurum, and a safety‑app rollout supported women workers in Kütahya. Heritage tourism sites such as regular events Sivas’s Kral Kaya caves, Gök Medrese and may be replicated the 3,200‑year‑old cave apartments in other districts. Also Zara attracted increasing visitors, while the Kızılırmak urban‑renewal project in July, Sivas municipality began the entered its first phase of construction phase, restoring the Kızılırmak Project, a 239 million‑TL urban renewal scheme that includes historic Eğri Bridge and adding new public amenities. Overall, the full coordinated effort links restoration of the historic Eğri Bridge, new food‑court areas, sports facilities, walking tracks structures, promotion of regional festivals and green space, intended expansion of women‑centered craft and vocational programmes to revitalize the city centre, enhance preserve Turkey’s cultural heritage legacy and boost stimulate local tourism. By late July the construction phase was officially kicked off: the appointed contractor set up sites and began field work, with the mayor announcing a target to finish the first‑phase amenities by year‑end and preparations for a second‑phase tender already under way. economies.