UNICEF Türkiye Business Advisory Board marks its 2nd anniversary focusing on earthquake response and child & youth centered recovery efforts

Istanbul, 15 June 2023 – UNICEF Türkiye Business Advisory Board (BAB) convened in Istanbul yesterday on its 2^nd anniversary to review the achievements and discuss future priorities.  BAB members’ initial agreement was to reach 2 million young people with skills development in various areas and 20,000 of them with enhanced employability opportunities. The goal was overachieved, and more than 4,9 million young people aged between 10 and 24 have benefited from numerous programmes and partnerships that have been implemented in collaboration with UNICEF, the Government of Türkiye, non-governmental partners, and the private sector in the areas of education, innovation, robotics, and life skills. 

The board during the meeting reviewed and analyzed the needs of the young people affected by the two devastating earthquakes and focused on addressing residual humanitarian needs and equipping them with green and digital skills to ensure their efficient contribution to a fast recovery and to a workforce suited for a green economy.

Maria Ahlström-Bondestam, the chairperson of the UNICEF International Council, joined the meeting as a special guest and underlined the critical role business have in bringing solutions to the many challenges children and young people face today. “Doing good is good for business. Customers and employees look more and more at the purpose behind the business when making their choices. Partnering with UNICEF has a huge return on investment” commented while underlying the great potential of the UNICEF green labs.

“UNICEF thanked the Business Advisory Board members for the impact reached together in the last two years and welcome the renewed commitment to contribute to a child and youth centered recovery efforts as well as the broader reforms agenda in the area of early childhood development, education and child protection, which will bring back hope and resilience.” said Regina De Dominicis, UNICEF Representative to Türkiye. 

BAB Members will continue to design and implement initiatives that leverage the power of the business sector to accelerate and scale results for children. New business partners are showing an interest to join the Board.

About the UNICEF Türkiye Business Advisory Board: 

The UNICEF Türkiye Business Advisory Board is a high-level advisory body comprised of private sector entities with inclusion of selected leaders from multi-lateral organizations, as well as young people themselves that will provide strategic direction and guidance to promote the objectives and planned results of GenU Türkiye, as well as other areas of strategic importance to child rights.  The Advisory Board in its first years of work will leverage the breadth of practical experience and technical expertise available in Türkiye, connect stakeholders with interest and capacity to support the skills development, employment, and empowerment of young people at-scale, and mobilize and enable collaboration and contributions to the GenU goals in Türkiye. Current Board members were selected based on scale and regional distribution of companies, commitments to equity and gender empowerment, and past experiences with corporate social responsibility activities and sustainability projects.