The Social Dimension in Selected Candidate Countries in the Balkans: Country Report on Turkey. ENEPRI Research Reports No. 41, 14 December 2007

The European Commission awarded a contract in November 2005 to a consortium composed of the TARKI Social Research Institute (Hungary), CASE, Center for Social and Economic Research (Poland) and CEPS to analyse the socio-economic developments and the process of structural reforms in what were then four candidate countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Turkey. The objective was to identify the major challenges in the current demographic, social and economic context that could be considered relevant in determining the capacity of these countries to function in the European Union. This study presents the findings for Turkey and consists of an analytical section and a statistical annex. The other country reports and synthesis report are published separately in this same serie

Political economy of citizens’ participation in environmental improvement: The case of Istanbul

We aim at questioning, within a political economy framework, the institutional context of environmental policies for the case of Turkey in general and of Istanbul in particular. The paper is centred around a survey study conducted with citizens of Istanbul (n=1565), a metropolitan city whose population is around 9 millions, with regard to their attitudes and behaviours on environmental issues, together with a set of in-depth interviews (n=16) carried out with representatives of business, NGOs, trade unions, and bureaucrats. The point of departure of the paper is the claim that environmental policies are likely to alter, overtly or covertly, the income distribution of societies, and ipso facto those who will be worse off in the ex-post sense will have a clear incentive to influence public authorities and politicians (be they central or local units) in not implementing them—their success depending of course on the extent to which the governing body is not sterile but open to corruption (the so-called “government failures”). The implication of the existence of such government failures on the enforceability of regulations dealing with environmental issues is certainly an area to which attention has recently been given, both at theoretical and empirical levels, where the issue of institutional context has emerged as one if not the important issue in addressing such failures. Turkey, being one of the clear examples of the existence of such corruptive elements, should certainly offer rich inputs to the said discussion, and the paper makes an attempt to questioning the institutional aspect of environmental policies from the point of view of citizens of Istanbul and of different stakeholders.political economy; environment; citizen participation; Istanbul

On environmental concern, willingness to pay, and postmaterialist values: Evidence from Istanbul

We explore the impact of geographical proximity of environmental problems on environmental concern and willingness to pay (WTP) for environmental improvement, with emphasis on the relevance of Inglehart’s postmaterialism thesis on this inquiry. A questionnaire was administered to 1565 respondents in Istanbul. The Contingent Valuation Method was used to measure WTP. Sea pollution in Istanbul (local issue), soil erosion in Turkey (national issue) and ozone depletion (global issue) were issues chosen for valuation. The sample was separated into three sub-samples, each being presented with only one issue. Individuals distinguish between local and global environmental concern. People with materialist values rather than postmaterialist values exhibit more concern for local environmental problems. However, postmaterialist values determine WTP for improvement in both the local and the global environmental problems. Distinguishing among concern for environmental issues, which are differentiated on the basis of geographical proximity, has relevance for the ongoing postmaterialist values debate.environmental concern; willingness to pay; postmaterialism; Istanbul

Network Effects in Risk Sharing and Credit Market Access: Evidence from Istanbul

It is a truism that households in developing countries that face idiosyncratic income/expenditure shocks may face difficulties in smoothing consumption through formal credit institutions, and hence rely, at least partially, on informal ties. While this issue has been explored extensively in the literature for rural areas, the picture reflecting the urban setting remains relatively uninvestigated. This paper aims to fill this gap by presenting an exclusively designed survey implemented in Istanbul. The results of a multi-stage logit estimation of the survey data indicate that monetary transfers from social networks and formal loans are complements, while general usage of network help implies an increased likelihood of asking for network help for easy and/or favorable access to credit. In addition, material security emerges as the key determinant of both eligibility for and use of a formal loan, and of having network help available in easing the loan approval process by banks.Social networks; risk sharing; credit market access; Turkey; household survey

Are Preferences for Environmental Quality Sensitive to Financial Funding Schemes? Evidence from a Marine Restoration Programme in the Black Sea

This paper uses a non-market valuation study to elicit consumers’ preferences for a marine restoration programme in the Black Sea aiming to reduce the level of public health risk from bathing and improve water quality and the overall level of marine biodiversity. In this context, we administer a stated choice experiment in coastal settlements in Ukraine and Turkey and employ two tax revenue reallocation schemes as payment vehicles. One proposes the financing of the marine restoration programme by the reduction of the public budget for renewable energy and the second by the reduction of the public budget on training for civil servants. We examine the stated preferences and the subsequently derived economic value estimates in the two treatments with the aim to investigate whether the trade-off implied by the funding scheme has implications for the valuation outcome. Results reveal that preferences and marginal rates of substitution between the non-price attributes under consideration differ significantly. In the civil servants’ budget reallocation scheme, the reallocation coefficient is positive, implying that ceteris paribus redistribution of public financial resources from this source is utility-enhancing. The magnitude of the results differs in the two considered countries mirroring their heterogeneity in political and cultural dimensions.Non-Market Valuation; Stated Choice Experiment, Payment Vehicle, Tax Revenues Reallocation, Marine Resources, Black Sea, Marine Biodiversity, Developing Countries

Hospital Choice: Survey Evidence From Istanbul

This paper analyzes the patient characteristics that affect the choice between public and private health care providers in Istanbul, Turkey. In addition to socioeconomic variables, such as insurance status or income, which have often been considered in the previous literature, we also focus on another factor, the availability of social networks, which might determine ease of access to hospital services in developing countries. The analysis is based on data from a household survey conducted in Istanbul. The econometric results indicate that potential social ties play an important role in choosing public health care centers over private ones for minor health problems. As public facilities have long been characterized by long waiting lines even for appointments for medical exams, this finding indicates that households who possess higher levels of social networks might be using those in easing access to public facilities.Public vs. Private Health Care Providers; Hospital Choice; Social Networks; Household Survey; Turkey