Citizen-Oriented Participation Mechanisms in Turkey: The Case of the Ministry of Interior

In this chapter, the citizen-oriented mechanisms of the Turkish Ministry of Interior (MoI) will be discussed according to the OECD’s public engagement classification. The MoI aims to ensure citizen-focused provision of local services and to increase citizen satisfaction. Through citizen satisfaction surveys, numerous efforts have been made to measure citizens’ expectations. With the use of crucial mechanisms such as open offices, Local Prevention and Security Boards, and a Law Enforcement Monitoring Commission, citizens’ needs, demands, and complaints are ascertained. The majority of the services offered by the MoI are now digitalized thanks to information and communication technologies including online e-government portals. Through performance evaluation and monitoring systems, performance indicators are gathered, assessed, and evaluated for ongoing improvement. However, although there is one significant example of an active participation mechanism in the internal security field, namely Local Prevention and Security Boards, the Turkish MoI mostly employs information and consultation procedures. In this chapter, the public is defined as citizens instead of customers or clients, because citizens are not passive service receivers. Citizens take part actively in service provision by evaluating services, and they also take part in the formulation of public policy making processes as partners.