The light of truth emerges from a clash of ideas (*)

The Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey is a non-partisan, non-profit think tank based in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded in 2004 by a group of businessmen, bureaucrats and academics who believe in the power of knowledge and ideas in shaping Turkey's future.

Aiming to contribute to public policy design, TEPAV seeks to enrich the knowledge content in Turkey's discussions. What sets TEPAV apart however, is its active involvement in economic and political development.  TEPAV carries out projects, which actively contribute to economic development and bring together key policy and opinion makers to tackle the problems of the day.  TEPAV sticks to academic ethnical principles and quality in all activities.

 

Economics, Governance and Foreign Policy

TEPAV is organized into three fields of Economics, Governance and Foreign Policy, and operates nine research institutes in different fields:

The Economic Policy Research Institute (EPRI) is the first of TEPAV institutes, and analyzes policy devoted to understanding and sustaining Turkey's economic development. It focuses on decision making and the efficient use of resources in economic transformation.

Stability Institute (SI) is the second TEPAV institute established in 2006 with the belief that stability is too important to be resigned to the hands of government and society alone.  The Institute sheds light on policies and practices that have implications on stability, thus helps government and other institutions in informing the public.

The International Policy Research Institute (IPRI) is the third of TEPAV's institutes and was founded in July of 2006. It develops foreign policy alternatives in order to ensure that Turkey foresees developments in its region and around the world.

The Entrepreneurship Institute (EI) conducts policy-based research to guide decision makers in promoting entrepreneurship. To this end, the Institute organizes training programs for existing and potential investors and publishes studies to promote entrepreneurship.

The Institute for Private Sector and Economic Development (IPSED) was established in the December 2008 meeting of the Istanbul Forum, which brought together business organizations from Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The Institute carries out studies that contribute to private sector development in regional countries.

The Training and Research Institute for Public Policy (TRIPP) was founded in September 2009 to conduct research and training in the public policy field. With this purpose, the Institute offers technical assistance and training in financial management to public staff in Turkey and abroad, particularly in Middle Eastern Countries.

The European Union Institute (EUI) was launched by TEPAV, already very active in the EU field, in November of 2009. The Institute focuses on the EU accession process and contributes to the acceleration of reforms and negotiation process.

Institute of Legal Studies (ILS) was established in January 2011 to assess the legal issues that are of general interest to the social life with a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective and to formulate ideas on and solutions to those issues. In addition to its focus on "constitution making", the Institute carries out regular studies on other related issues including "government systems", "election systems" and "judicial independence".

Finance Institute (FI) was established in July 2011 to monitor international developments in finance and provide key information to the Turkish financial industry on the global developments. Major issues on the Institute's radar are regulatory and political risks on finance industries as well as recent innovations in emerging market financial systems.

In addition to its institutes, TEPAV operates two working centers: The TEPAV-World Bank Information Center launched in cooperation with the World Bank, and Russian Center, in cooperation with the Russkiy Mir Foundation.

(*) Namık Kemal