Economic growth, income distribution, and social exclusion in Turkey

This chapter examines the degree of income and institutional convergence between Turkey and European Union (EU) as well as trends in inequality and poverty by taking a long-term perspective as changes in polices an institutions impact on economic and social outcomes, often with considerable lags. The authors’ findings reveal that Turkey has successfully transformed its inward-looking and largely agricultural economy in the past 35 years into an export-oriented and urban-based economy. The transformation has been achieved mostly in periods of dramatic reform embedded in business and political cycles. Nevertheless, in the most recent era, there have been significant setbacks for certain groups in terms of regulatory environment, equality of opportunity, and access to markets and resources. Although there has been progress in the overall distribution of income and other aspects of social inclusion, convergence to EU standards is not easy to observe in these indicators.