WAPES Executive Board Meeting Held

The 2025 Board of Directors meeting of the World Association of Public Employment Services (WAPES), of which İŞKUR assumed the role of Vice President, was held in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

During the first session of the meeting, Greta Metka Barbo Skerbinc, Director General of the Slovenian Public Employment Service and current WAPES President, delivered an opening speech. Skerbinc expressed her pleasure at hosting the current Board of Directors and stated that activities carried out under the WAPES umbrella strengthen the exchange of experience and knowledge among member countries.

İŞKUR Deputy Director General İbrahim Oğuzhan Yıldırım emphasized Türkiye’s recent developments in the field of employment, İŞKUR’s innovative services offered to the labor market, and the importance they attribute to regional cooperation within the framework of Türkiye’s role as WAPES Vice-President.

Following the opening remarks, Mehmet Altun, Head of the Department of International Relations and Projects, took the floor in a session designed to outline the activities and planned work of each region. Altun provided information on the European Region’s regional cooperation projects and meetings carried out throughout 2025 and addressed the planned WAPES activities and current developments for the following year.

In the subsequent sessions of the meeting, discussions were held on the evaluation of the 2025 activities and budget, the presentation of the 2026 action plan and priorities, membership updates, proposed changes to internal and financial regulations, and the WAPES long-term strategy for the 2026–2035 period.

Another important development directly concerning İŞKUR was the handover of the Presidency of the Center of Public Employment Services of Southeast European Countries (CPESSEC) for 2026 to İŞKUR during the same event. This handover was considered a significant step demonstrating the continued strong regional cooperation and joint commitment to improving employment services across Southeast Europe.

On the second day of the program, a field visit organized by the Slovenian Public Employment Service was carried out, during which regional field offices were observed on-site to examine good practices in employment services.