Publication: Life Chances in Turkey : Expanding
Opportunities for the Next Generation
Loading...
Date
2010
ISSN
Published
2010
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Life chances explore the state of equality of opportunities in Turkey. It builds on the concepts and ideas presented in the World Development Report 2006: equity and development. The authors assess how today's distribution of wealth and the success of children in learning to read and write are shaped by the past, by factors predetermined at birth, factors over which today's children and families have no control: one's gender, parents' and grandparents' education, region and area of birth, or mother tongue. Some of the findings are stark, especially as they pertain to how the opportunities today's children have affect the future of the country: a girl born in a remote village to a poor family and parents with primary education degrees will very likely struggle in almost every area of her development. Compared with a boy born to well-off, highly educated parents in one of the urban centers in the country's west, that girl is four times as likely to suffer from low birth weight, one-third as likely to be immunized, and ten times as likely to have her growth stunted as a result of malnutrition. Similarly she has a one-in-five chance of completing high school, whereas the boy will likely finish school and move on to college. Life chances shows how investing in early childhood education has huge payoffs, for disadvantaged children as well as social and economic development at large. This book goes beyond tradeoffs between efficiency and equity. It shows that a focus on equity, equality of opportunities, can also lead to enhanced efficiency, once the productive capabilities of all citizens are nurtured to their fullest extent regardless of the luck of the draw at birth.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Aran, Meltem; Hentschel, Jesko; Can, Raif; Gignoux, Jeremie; Ferreira, Francisco H.G.; Uraz, Arzu. 2010. Life Chances in Turkey : Expanding
Opportunities for the Next Generation. Directions in Development ; human development. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2505 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Publication Democratic Republic of Congo Urbanization Review(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2018)The Democratic Republic of Congo has the third largest urban population in sub-Saharan Africa (estimated at 43% in 2016) after South Africa and Nigeria. It is expected to grow at a rate of 4.1% per year, which corresponds to an additional 1 million residents moving to cities every year. If this trend continues, the urban population could double in just 15 years. Thus, with a population of 12 million and a growth rate of 5.1% per year, Kinshasa is poised to become the most populous city in Africa by 2030. Such strong urban growth comes with two main challenges – the need to make cities livable and inclusive by meeting the high demand for social services, infrastructure, education, health, and other basic services; and the need to make cities more productive by addressing the lack of concentrated economic activity. The Urbanization Review of the Democratic Republic of Congo argues that the country is urbanizing at different rates and identifies five regions (East, South, Central, West and Congo Basin) that present specific challenges and opportunities. The Urbanization Review proposes policy options based on three sets of instruments, known as the three 'I's – Institutions, Infrastructures and Interventions – to help each region respond to its specific needs while reaping the benefits of economic agglomeration The Democratic Republic of the Congo is at a crossroads. The recent decline in commodity prices could constitute an opportunity for the country to diversify its economy and invest in the manufacturing sector. Now is an opportune time for Congolese decision-makers to invest in cities that can lead the country's structural transformation and facilitate greater integration with African and global markets. Such action would position the country well on the path to emergence.Publication Entrepreneurship Education and Training Programs around the World : Dimensions for Success(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2014-04-23)Entrepreneurship has attracted global interest for its potential to catalyze economic and social development. Research suggesting that certain entrepreneurial mindsets and skills can be learned has given rise to the field of entrepreneurship education and training (EET). Despite the growth of EET, global knowledge about these programs and their impact remains thin. In response, this study surveys the available literature and program evaluations to propose a Conceptual Framework for understanding the EET program landscape. The study finds that EET today consists of a heterogeneous mix of programs that can be broken into two groups: entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship training. These programs target a range of participants: secondary and post-secondary education students, as well as potential and practicing entrepreneurs. The outcomes measured by program evaluations are equally diverse but generally fall under the domains of entrepreneurial mindsets and capabilities, entrepreneurial status, and entrepreneurial performance. The dimensions of EET programs vary according the particular target group. Programs targeting secondary education students focus on the development of foundational skills linked to entrepreneurship, while post-secondary education programs emphasize skills related to strategic business planning. Programs targeting potential entrepreneurs generally are embedded within broader support programs and tend to target vulnerable populations for whom employment alternatives may be limited. While programs serving practicing entrepreneurs focus on strengthening entrepreneurs’ knowledge, skills and business practices, which while unlikely to transform an enterprise in the near term, may accrue benefits to entrepreneurs over time. The study also offers implications for policy and program implementation, emphasizing the importance of clarity about target groups and desired outcomes when making program choices, and sound understanding of extent to which publicly-supported programs offer a broader public good, and compare favorably to policy alternatives for supporting the targeted individuals as well as the overall economic and social objectives.Publication At a Crossroads(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017-05-02)Higher education (HE) has expanded dramatically in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) since 2000. While access became more equitable, quality concerns remain. This volume studies the expansion, as well as HE quality, variety and equity in LAC. It investigates the expansion’s demand and supply drivers, and outlines policy implications.Publication Options for Aged Care in China(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2018-11-20)China is aging at an unprecedented rate. Improvements in life expectancy and the consequences of the decades-old family planning policy have led to a rapid increase in the elderly population. According to the United Nations World Population Prospects, the proportion of older people age 65 and over will increase by about one-fourth by 2030, and the elderly will account for about one quarter of the total population by 2050. Population aging will not only pose challenges for elder care but also have an impact on the economy and all aspects of society (World Bank, 2016a). The government is aware of the need to develop an efficient and sustainable approach to aged care. To this end, the General Office of the State Council issued the 12th Five-Year Plan for the Development of Aged Care Services in China and the Development Plan for a System of Social Services for the Aged (2011-2015). It is now in the process of formulating the 13th Five-Year National Plan on Aging, which will further elaborate and finalize the reform roadmap for 2016 to 2020. The Plan is expected to be finalized and launched by June 2016. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) helped draft these plans and is now leading the development of policy measures for the provision of social services for the elderly. This volume has been prepared to support the translation of the broad ideas on aged care provision expressed in the 12th and 13th Five-Year Plans and other government plans into reality and to help the government tackle the challenges described above. It strives to identify a policy framework that fits the Chinese context and can be put in place gradually. Specifically, it aims to provide an up-to-date understanding of the evolving aged care landscape in China; review international experiences in long-term care provision, financing, and quality assurance and assess their relevance to China’s current situation; discuss implications of current developments and trends for the future of aged care in China; and propose policy options based on available evidence and best practices.Publication An Investment Framework for Nutrition(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2017-04-12)The report estimates the costs, impacts and financing scenarios to achieve the World Health Assembly global nutrition targets for stunting, anemia in women, exclusive breastfeeding and the scaling up of the treatment of severe wasting among young children. To reach these four targets, the world needs $70 billion over 10 years to invest in high-impact nutrition-specific interventions. This investment would have enormous benefits: 65 million cases of stunting and 265 million cases of anemia in women would be prevented in 2025 as compared with the 2015 baseline. In addition, at least 91 million more children would be treated for severe wasting and 105 million additional babies would be exclusively breastfed during the first six months of life over 10 years. Altogether, achieving these targets would avert at least 3.7 million child deaths. Every dollar invested in this package of interventions would yield between $4 and $35 in economic returns, making investing in early nutrition one of the best value-for-money development actions. Although some of the targets—especially those for reducing stunting in children and anemia in women—are ambitious and will require concerted efforts in financing, scale-up, and sustained commitment, recent experience from several countries suggests that meeting these targets is feasible. These investments in the critical 1000 day window of early childhood are inalienable and portable and will pay lifelong dividends – not only for children directly affected but also for us all in the form of more robust societies – that will drive future economies.
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Turkey(Washington, DC, 2009-02)This report is a part of larger welfare and social policy work agenda which the Turkish State Planning Organization and the World Bank are carrying out collaboratively. The work agenda includes the preparation of a number of conceptualized, and in part of co-authored, analytical studies on topics ranging from examines the equity determinants to investigating the links between poverty, employment creation, and growth. Further, the work agenda comprises a number of human development dialogues for which we are inviting international experts and practioners to share their experiences about social policy reforms with the Turkish government and the wider academic and non-governmental public. This report examines life chances. Life chances for today Turkish people, most importantly future generation, today's children. The results presented in this report show that life chances differ in important dimensions today, and that Turkey could immensely improve its human and economic development potential by maximizing such opportunities.Publication Tuvalu : Early Childhood Development(Washington, DC, 2014-11-10)This report presents an analysis of the early childhood development (ECD) programs and policies which affect young children in Tuvalu and recommendations to move forward. It is part of a series of reports prepared by the World Bank using the systems approach for better education results (SABER)-ECD framework and includes analysis of early learning, health, nutrition, and social and child protection policies and interventions in Tuvalu, along with some regional and international comparisons.Publication Kingdom of Tonga : Early Childhood Development(Washington, DC, 2012-01)This report presents an analysis of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and policies which affect young children in the Kingdom of Tonga. This report is part of a series of reports prepared by the World Bank using the Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER)-ECD framework and includes analysis of early learning, health, nutrition and social and child protection policies and interventions in the Kingdom of Tonga and regional and international comparisons. Tonga is a lower-middle-income country with a population of 104,509, of which approximately 13 percent are below the age of 5. SABER-ECD collects, analyzes and disseminates comprehensive information on ECD policies around the world. In each participating country, extensive multi-sectoral information is collected on ECD policies and programs through a desk review of available government documents, data and literature, and interviews with a range of ECD stakeholders, including government officials, service providers, civil society, development partners and scholars. The SABER-ECD framework presents a holistic and integrated assessment of how the overall policy environment in a country affects young children's development. SABER-ECD identifies three core policy goals that countries should address to ensure optimal ECD outcomes: establishing an enabling environment, implementing widely and monitoring and assuring quality. Improving ECD requires an integrated approach to address all three goals.Publication Vanuatu Early Childhood Development : SABER Country Report 2012(Washington, DC, 2012)This report presents an analysis of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and policies that affect young children in Vanuatu. This report is part of a series of reports prepared by the World Bank using the SABER-ECD framework1 and includes analysis of early learning, health, nutrition and social and child protection policies and interventions in Vanuatu, along with regional and international comparisons.Publication Tajikistan : Early Childhood Development(Washington, DC, 2013)This report presents an analysis of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and policies which affect young children in Tajikistan. This report is part of a series of reports prepared by the World Bank using the Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER)-ECD framework. Tajikistan has a population of 7.76 million people, of which 35 percent are below the age of 15. Unlike some countries in the region, Tajikistan has a positive population growth rate. SABER-ECD collects, analyzes and disseminates comprehensive information on ECD policies around the world. In each participating country, extensive multi- sectoral information is collected on ECD policies and programs through a desk review of available government documents, data and literature, and interviews with a range of ECD stakeholders, including government officials, service providers, civil society, development partners and scholars. SABER-ECD identifies three core policy goals that countries should address to ensure optimal ECD outcomes: establishing an enabling environment, implementing widely and monitoring and assuring quality. Improving ECD requires an integrated approach to address all three goals. Tajikistan has taken steps to develop and adopt national laws and regulations that promote appropriate dietary consumption by pregnant women and young children.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Business Ready 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-03)Business Ready (B-READY) is a new World Bank Group corporate flagship report that evaluates the business and investment climate worldwide. It replaces and improves upon the Doing Business project. B-READY provides a comprehensive data set and description of the factors that strengthen the private sector, not only by advancing the interests of individual firms but also by elevating the interests of workers, consumers, potential new enterprises, and the natural environment. This 2024 report introduces a new analytical framework that benchmarks economies based on three pillars: Regulatory Framework, Public Services, and Operational Efficiency. The analysis centers on 10 topics essential for private sector development that correspond to various stages of the life cycle of a firm. The report also offers insights into three cross-cutting themes that are relevant for modern economies: digital adoption, environmental sustainability, and gender. B-READY draws on a robust data collection process that includes specially tailored expert questionnaires and firm-level surveys. The 2024 report, which covers 50 economies, serves as the first in a series that will expand in geographical coverage and refine its methodology over time, supporting reform advocacy, policy guidance, and further analysis and research.Publication Global Economic Prospects, June 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-06-11)After several years of negative shocks, global growth is expected to hold steady in 2024 and then edge up in the next couple of years, in part aided by cautious monetary policy easing as inflation gradually declines. However, economic prospects are envisaged to remain tepid, especially in the most vulnerable countries. Risks to the outlook, while more balanced, are still tilted to the downside, including the possibility of escalating geopolitical tensions, further trade fragmentation, and higher-for-longer interest rates. Natural disasters related to climate change could also hinder activity. Subdued growth prospects across many emerging market and developing economies and continued risks underscore the need for decisive policy action at the global and national levels. Global Economic Prospects is a World Bank Group Flagship Report that examines global economic developments and prospects, with a special focus on emerging market and developing economies, on a semiannual basis (in January and June). Each edition includes analytical pieces on topical policy challenges faced by these economies.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication World Development Indicators 2014(Washington, DC, 2014-05-09)World Development Indicators 2014 provides a compilation of relevant, high-quality, and internationally comparable statistics about global development and the fight against poverty. It is intended to help users of all kinds—policymakers, students, analysts, professors, program managers, and citizens—find and use data related to all aspects of development, including those that help monitor and understand progress toward the two goals. Six themes are used to organize indicators—world view, people, environment, economy, states and markets, and global links. As in past editions, World view reviews global progress toward the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and provides key indicators related to poverty. A complementary online data analysis tool is available this year to allow readers to further investigate global, regional, and country progress on the MDGs: http://data.worldbank.org/mdgs. Each of the remaining sections includes an introduction; six stories highlighting specific global, regional or country trends; and a table of the most relevant and popular indicators for that theme, together with a discussion of indicator compilation methodology.Publication Lebanon Economic Monitor, Fall 2022(Washington, DC, 2022-11)The economy continues to contract, albeit at a somewhat slower pace. Public finances improved in 2021, but only because spending collapsed faster than revenue generation. Testament to the continued atrophy of Lebanon’s economy, the Lebanese Pound continues to depreciate sharply. The sharp deterioration in the currency continues to drive surging inflation, in triple digits since July 2020, impacting the poor and vulnerable the most. An unprecedented institutional vacuum will likely further delay any agreement on crisis resolution and much needed reforms; this includes prior actions as part of the April 2022 International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff-level agreement (SLA). Divergent views among key stakeholders on how to distribute the financial losses remains the main bottleneck for reaching an agreement on a comprehensive reform agenda. Lebanon needs to urgently adopt a domestic, equitable, and comprehensive solution that is predicated on: (i) addressing upfront the balance sheet impairments, (ii) restoring liquidity, and (iii) adhering to sound global practices of bail-in solutions based on a hierarchy of creditors (starting with banks’ shareholders) that protects small depositors.