PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION & ICTs PHASE II REPORT Turkey
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Authors
Kushchu, Ibrahim
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Technology & Social Change Group, University of Washington Information School
Abstract
This report presents the research on public access to information and communication
landscape in Turkey. During recent years, a significant effort is being made to improve the
infrastructure and to enable the branches of the government to create a more successful
society in Turkey. With support from the government, the State Planning Organization
launched the 2006 eSociety action plan. Since then several strong initiatives have been
taken to strengthen the existing venues and to find new ones that offer public access to
information and ICT.
With these new initiatives, the venues are now called Public Internet Access Centers
(PIACs) in Turkey. The responsibilities for setting them up are given to various public
organizations and therefore they are coming up in various forms. One major group of PIACs
involves in both enhancements of existing Internet centers within public libraries and
increasing their numbers. One group is being established by the local authorities. Yet a
another group is planned to be part of already well spread Public Training Centers in
Turkey. In addition to these, there are a few more focused groups such those in industrial
zones or military barracks.
When this report was written, almost half of 4500 planned PIACs was opened. Each of
these venues aimed to respond effectively to the needs of the public to access information
via ICT while providing basic training in ICT skills. There are various underserved groups
in Turkey who would benefit directly from these venues. Some of these groups include the
unemployed, women staying at home, and those with little or no formal education.
This study aims to explore existing and prospective PIACs in Turkey and evaluates them in
terms of their potential and effectiveness to serve the underserved better. The first part of
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the report presents an overview, and the methodology used to collect data that makes up
the core of the research. Following a general country assessment, the report offers detailed
analysis of the each of the venues chosen. In the final part are the concluding remarks and
further recommendations.
Description
This research focuses on the public access to information and communication landscapes in
24 countries, with specific focus on public libraries, to understand the information needs of
underserved communities, public access to information and communication venues, and
the role of ICT.
Through field research in 24 countries conducted by local research partners, and crosscountry
comparative analysis based on common research design elements, (see list of
countries and research design overview in Appendix), the project aims to contribute to the
knowledge in the field of information and ICT for development. Of particular interest and
value are: the comparative look at key venues (libraries and other), and the combination of
the depth of in‐country knowledge with the breadth of global comparison to elicit success
factors and scenarios to understand how diverse populations can and do access and use
ICT to improve their lives. All output of this research will be broadly disseminated to
interested stakeholders and placed in the public domain.
Citation
Kushchu, I. (2008). Public access to information & ICTs: Turkey. Public Access Landscape Study final report, presented to University of Washington Center for Information & Society (CIS), Seattle.