Effective use of public resources and rational administrative boundaries

Türkiye’s Settlement Pattern and Population Dynamics (Article 17)

Aydın Tiryaki (2026)

The civil administration system of Türkiye constitutes the main structure where the state reaches the citizen. However, the current administrative division map is largely a legacy shaped by historical processes and the logistical possibilities of the past. In today’s era of fast transportation, advanced technology, and digital communication, some administrative boundaries have become obstacles that reduce efficiency in public services and lead to a waste of resources. The new approach we propose in settlement architecture aims to reorganize administrative boundaries not only for political or historical reasons but also based on rational service capacity and efficiency (1).

The most fundamental criterion for a new efficiency-oriented division is the time and cost of access to service. In the current structure, settlements that are very close to each other but attached to different administrative units face an unnecessary bureaucratic sluggishness when delivering public services. For example, for a village located right on the border of a district to have to go to its own district center, which is much further away, for basic public services is both a waste of time and an economic burden. To overcome this, “Functional Service Areas” should be established, and administrative boundaries should be flexed according to the center from which the settlement receives service most easily (2).

Administrative simplification constitutes the second critical pillar of this model. The statuses of small districts, whose population and economic weight have significantly weakened and where the public expenditure required for them to survive as an administrative unit has exceeded the service they provide, should be re-evaluated. Instead of ignoring these settlements completely, making them branches or “service units” of stronger centers will provide great savings on the public budget. These saved resources can be directed to technological infrastructure and social projects that will increase the quality of the settlement (3).

In conclusion, Türkiye’s management map should be seen not as a static table but as a living and changing organism. An efficiency-oriented administrative division does not weaken the power of the state; on the contrary, it accelerates local development by using public resources more wisely. Reconfiguring boundaries not as mere geographical lines but as a means of delivering the fastest and cheapest service to the citizen is a mandatory step for a modern state management (4).

Aydın Tiryaki Ankara, January 12, 2026

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All ideas, opinions, and suggestions in this article belong to the author. During the process of writing the text, the artificial intelligence Gemini was utilized for writing assistance and information compilation.

ANNEXES

Annex A: New Efficiency Criteria in Administrative Division

• Service Access Time: Optimization of the time for the citizen to reach the most basic public unit (health, security, etc.).
• Personnel Efficiency: Balancing the population and service area per public official.
• Budget Rationalization: Reducing the share of administrative building and operating expenses within the total budget.

Annex B: Proposed Administrative Simplification Steps

• Combined Service Areas: Joint management of the service units of small districts that complement each other geographically and economically.
• Mobile Public Offices: Using technologically equipped mobile service vehicles instead of fixed buildings for scattered settlements.
• Digital District Governorate: Completing some administrative procedures via digital platforms without the need for a physical building.

REFERENCES

(1) Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Interior, Civil Administration Restructuring and Modernization Strategies. https://www.icisleri.gov.tr

(2) Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), Regional Service Access and Mobility Analyses. https://www.tuik.gov.tr

(3) Tiryaki, A. (2026). Scale Problem and Administrative Uniformity (Article 8 of the Series).

(4) General Directorate of Development Agencies, Local Development Oriented Administrative Restructuring Reports. https://www.ka.gov.tr