The Vice President Yılmaz attended the opening of the academic year at Bingöl University.

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz condemned the terrorist attack on TUSAŞ, stating, “We will continue to give the best response to these terrorist groups that aim at our national unity and brotherhood by elevating our unity and brotherhood even further and by working harder, sweating it out.”

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz attended the opening of the academic year at his university in his hometown Bingöl. Speaking at the event, Yılmaz expressed his condolences to all the employees and veterans in the defense industry. Wishing mercy for the martyrs and healing for the wounded, Yılmaz said, “What we have experienced will not hold us back on our path; on the contrary, it will motivate us to work and produce with even more determination and resolve. We will continue to give the best response to these terrorist groups that aim at our national unity and brotherhood by elevating our unity and brotherhood even further and by working harder, sweating it out.”

“On one hand, we invested in infrastructure, on the other hand, we took democratic steps.”

Stating that universities are institutions of knowledge and wisdom that build the future of a society, Yılmaz said, “Higher education is among the areas we have always focused on and invested the most. In 2002, education received only a 9.4% share from the central government budget, which increased to 14.8%, approximately 15%, in 2025. By expanding universities across every corner of our country from east to west, we promoted specialization in higher education and strong academic performance. We ended the unfair coefficient system in university admissions, ensuring that every student could participate in the educational competition under equal conditions. These were Turkey’s shame, a shame for democracy as well. Thankfully, today there is neither coefficient oppression nor ridiculous taboos like the headscarf ban left in our country. On one hand, we invested in infrastructure, on the other hand, we took democratic steps. And today, our universities continue their journey in a more free and scientific environment than ever before.”

“The net enrollment rate in higher education has reached 50%.”

Emphasizing that they have increased the number of higher education institutions from 76 in 2002 to 209 today, Yılmaz continued his speech:

“The number of students has surpassed 7 million during this process. Thanks to these investments, there has been a significant increase in enrollment rates with the expansion of our universities. The net enrollment rate in higher education, which was 15% in 2003, has now reached 50%. I proudly state that the net enrollment rate of women and young girls in higher education has increased from 14% to 51%. We increased the number of academic staff from approximately 64,000 when we took office to 185,000, placing Turkey 8th among OECD countries in terms of the number of academic personnel. This numerical increase has also reflected in scientific studies. We raised our country’s ranking in scientific publications from 29th to 17th in the world. God willing, we will all witness the days when we enter the top 10 countries. The Republic of Turkey is one of the rare countries in the world that offers free education in higher education. We do not want universities that are mere copies of one another. We want diverse universities. We want universities that position themselves based on their region and conditions, developing both themselves and their surroundings. The university should not be disconnected from the city. The education at the university must overlap with the needs of the economy. Many of today’s professions will not exist in five years. All professions will transform, and some new professions will emerge. We need to see them now. Bingöl University has cooperation agreements with 109 universities from 44 countries, and over a thousand international students from nearly 40 countries are studying at our university.”

After the speeches, the new academic year was inaugurated. Yılmaz then attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the Bingöl University Development Foundation building.