Kartepe Summit was organized for the second time under the auspices of Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality, on 26-28 October 2018, with the theme “Migration, Refugees and Humanity.” The Summit, which consisted of 2 opening sessions, 2 workshops, 48 panels, 12 academic sessions and 11 case-study meetings, was been held with the participation of academics, intellectuals, representatives of NGOs, regional and international organizations. Fatma Şahin, Mayor of Gaziantep and President of UCLG-MEWA, and Mehmet Duman, UCLG-MEWA Secretary General, were among the members of the Honorary Board of the Summit, which was presided by Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey.
360 academics, press representatives and politicians from 30 countries gathered in the three-day event that tackled with different perspectives one the most important issues of humanity: migration and refugees. Discussions mainly served to develop a discourse on different solutions for policy makers and decision-makers.
Within the framework of the Summit, Salim Korkmaz, UCLG-MEWA General Coordinator, moderated the session titled “the Syrian Crisis and Experiences of Migration Management,” which attracted the attention of UCLG-MEWA members and partner institutions. The session was organized with the presence of representatives from Syrian NGOs invited by UCLG-MEWA, and created a platform where governors, mayors and academics from different countries came together to discuss the issue.