Public funds aren’t enough; they’re getting money from the EU
Foundations known for their proximity to the ruling party have started 2026 with EU funding as well. It has been determined that the National Agency provided 37,106 euros to the Ensar Foundation, 34,392 euros to the Önder Imam Hatip Students Association, and 35,777 euros to Kartal Imam Hatip High School.
Mustafa Bildircin
Nearly 30,000 foundations and associations were established during the AKP governments. The vast majority of the associations and foundations established during the AKP era were granted tax exemptions. Numerous foundations, including TÜRGEV, TÜGVA, and Ensar Foundation, were characterized as “the government’s foundations” due to their activities. Public funds were practically mobilized for the foundations and associations that became symbols of the AKP era. It was alleged that astronomical sums were transferred from public funds to these foundations, which were frequently the subject of controversy.
AN UNBROKEN TRADITION
Numerous foundations that received preferential treatment from municipal budgets and were labelled as “close to the ruling party” turned their attention to EU funds following the changes in local government resulting from the March 31, 2019, local elections. Foundations that have received grants of hundreds of thousands of euros almost every year since 2021 from the Turkish National Agency continued this tradition in 2026 as well.
The Turkish National Agency completed the evaluation process for projects submitted under the Erasmus Program 2025 Call for Proposals on March 31, 2026.
The National Agency also determined the names of the institutions and organizations eligible for the grants, as well as the maximum grant amounts allocated to the projects. The list included foundations and associations well-known to the public, as well as Kartal Anadolu Imam Hatip High School.
According to the National Agency’s data, the Ensar Foundation was awarded a grant of 37,106 euros for the “Return to Nature Project.” It was also noted that the Önder Imam Hatip Alumni Association’s project, “Vaccinating Youth for the Future of Civil Society,” was approved for funding. In this context, the association was approved for a grant of up to 34,392 euros.
Kartal Imam Hatip High School, from which President Erdoğan’s son Bilal Erdoğan graduated, also made it onto the list of grant recipients. The school’s grant application for the project “Building the Future with the Heritage of the Past: Experimental History of Science Workshops,” resulted in a grant of 35,777 euros.
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Kamu yetmiyor, AB’den topluyor, published in BirGün newspaper on April 4, 2026.
