Turkey, Republic of

[Turkey (Petar)]

Conventional long form name:
Republic of Turkey

Conventional short form name:
Turkey

Local long form name:
Türkiye Cumhuriyeti

Local short form name:
Türkiye

Capital:
Ankara (4,338,620 citizens)

Government type:
Parliamentary Republic

Administrative divisions:
81 provinces, 923 districts

Land area:
783,562 km²

Declaration of Republic:
29 October 1923

Suffrage:
18 years of age, universal

Head of State:
President Abdullah Gül

Head of Government:
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

GDP:
$778.089 billion; $10,522 per capita

Unemployment rate:
8.8%

Budget revenues:
$276,065,731,483.15

Budget expenses:
$283,416,835,273.60

External debt:
$310,870,031,793.46 (38.14% GDP)

Inflation rate:
10.43%

Natural resources:
coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower

Industries:
textiles, food processing, autos, electronics, tourism, mining (coal, chromate, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper

Exports:
$143.93 billion

Imports:
$235.49 billion

Population:
74,724,269

Life expectancy:
72.77 years

Ethnic groups:
Turkish 70-75%, Kurdish 18%, other minorities 7-12% (2008 est.)

Religions:
Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)

Literacy rate:
87.4%

[Turkey (Petar)]

Government of the Republic of Turkey

Head of State: President Abdullah Gül


The President of Turkey (Cumhurbaşkanı) is the head of state of the Republic of Turkey. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office but has some important functions. In this capacity he represents the Republic of Turkey, and the unity of the Turkish nation; he ensures the implementation of the Turkish constitution, and the organized and harmonious functioning of the organs of state. The articles from 101 to 106 of the constitution establish all the requirements, election, duties and responsibilities for the office of the President. The office of the President of Turkey was established with the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey on October 29, 1923.

The current office-holder is the 11th president, Abdullah Gül since August 28, 2007.

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The Grand National Assembly of Turkey


President Obama of the United States holding a speech before the Grand National Assembly

The The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM, Turkish: Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi), usually referred to simply as the Meclis ("parliament"), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Constitution. It was founded in Ankara on 23 April 1920 in the midst of the Turkish War of Independence. The parliament was fundamental in the efforts of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and his colleagues to found a new state out of the remnants of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of the World War I.

There are 550 members of parliament (deputies) who are elected for a four-year term by the D'Hondt method, a party-list proportional representation system, from 85 electoral districts which represent the 81 administrative provinces of Turkey (Istanbul is divided into three electoral districts whereas Ankara and İzmir are divided into two each because of their large populations). To avoid a hung parliament and its excessive political fragmentation, only parties that win at least 10% of the votes cast in a national parliamentary election gain the right to representation in the parliament.

Since the 2002 general elections, an absolute majority of the seats belong to the members of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party), who lead a single-party government.



Distribution of Seats in the Parliament: 550 seats

• Justice and Development Party: 326
• Republican People's Party: 135
• Nationalist Movement Party: 52
• Peace and Democracy Party: 29
• Independents: 6
• Participatory Democracy Parts: 1
• Vacant: 1

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The Council of Ministers

The Cabinet of Turkey, formally known as the Council of Ministers (Turkish: Bakanlar Kurulu) comprises the heads of the major ministries. Ministers are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister. The cabinet is the executive power and is responsible for the management of the state.

Current cabinet is the 61st cabinet of Turkey and was established on July 5, 2011. Current Prime Minister is Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, leader of the Justice and Development Party.

Prime Minister: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Deputy Prime Minister: Bülent Arınç
Deputy Prime Minister: Bekir Bozdağ
Deputy Prime Minister: Ali Babacan
Deputy Prime Minister: Beşir Atalay
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Ahmet Davutoğlu
Minister of the Interior: İdris Naim Şahin
Minister of Finance: Mehmet Şimşek
Minister of Justice: Sadullah Ergin
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources: Taner Yıldız
Minister of Food, Agriculture and Animal Breeding: Mehmet Mehdi Eker
Minister of Culture and Tourism: Ertuğrul Günay
Minister of Health: Recep Akdağ
Minister of National Education: Ömer Dinçer
Minister of National Defense: İsmet Yılmaz
Minister of Science, Industry and Technology: Nihat Ergün
Minister of Labour and Social Security: Faruk Çelik
Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communication: Binali Yıldırım
Minister of Family and Social Policy: Fatma Şahin
Minister of European Union Affairs and Chief Negotiator: Egemen Bağış
Minister of Economy: Zafer Çağlayan
Minister of Youth and Sports: Suat Kılıç
Minister of Development: Cevdet Yılmaz
Minister of Customs and Trade: Hayati Yazıcı
Minister of Environment and Urban Planning: Erdoğan Bayraktar
Minister of Forestry and Water Works: Veysel Eroğlu