'Province by Province, Turkey on the Road to Europe' meeting in Mersin
The Mersin Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MTSO) will hold a meeting called 'Province by Province, Turkey on the Road to Europe' October 28. The meeting at the MTSO Conference Hall will be held jointly with the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) Volunteers for Democratic Transformation, the Istanbul Swedish Consulate, and Bahçeşehir University ABADAM (European Union Documentation Centre).

Panel on 'Economic and Financial Developments in Turkey-EU Relations' in Kayseri
In Kayseri, Alumni of the Ankara University Faculty of Political Sciences will host a panel discussion on 'Economic and Financial Developments in Turkey-EU Relations' on October 30. The Kayseri EU Info Relay is supporting the panel, which will be held at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Cultural Centre, covering the cost of printing and distributing the written invitations.

Seminar on 'Anti-discrimination in the EU and Its Reflections on Turkey' in Ankara
Within the framework of the 'Anti-Discrimination Community Programme', a seminar on 'Anti-Discrimination in the EU and Its Reflections on Turkey: Legislation, Implementations and Equality Institutions' was held with the support of the EU Commission in Ankara on 11-12 October 2004.

ATAUM meeting with foreign media members
Ankara University European Union Research Centre (ATAUM) hosted a round table meeting with representatives of the foreign media in Turkey on October 7. Reflections in the international media on the approach taken by the EU Commission in its October 6 Regular Report on Turkey were discussed during the meeting. ATAUM, one of the 14 European Documentation Centres in Turkey, is planning to hold one round table meeting each month from now on.

Conference on 'Turkey on the Road to EU Membership' by ARI Movement
The ARI Movement held a conference on 'Turkey on the Road to EU Membership' October 15 in Istanbul. The conference, which was held in cooperation with the Centre for European Reform (CER), aimed to form an open-discussion platform on EU-Turkey relations on the road to and after the EU's December Summit.

'EU SME Policies, Support Mechanisms and Applications in Turkey' conferences in Samsun and Trabzon
The EU Info Relay operating within the Samsun Chamber of Commerce and Industry held a conference entitled 'EU SME Policies, Support Mechanisms and Applications in Turkey' October 25. The EU Info Relay operating within the Trabzon Chamber of Commerce and Industry will host a conference on the same issue October 26.

Çukurova University European Union Documentation Centre
Çukurova University (ÇÜ) Documentation Centre was established with the EU-ÇÜ Protocol in 1979 at the Central Library of the university within the framework of the information policy in order to improve knowledge about the European Union and its policies in Turkey. The Documentation Centre represents a new opportunity for those who wish to conduct research about the EU and its relations with Turkey.

Conference on 'Communication Policies in the EU and Turkey' from Ankara University
The Chancellery of Ankara University hosted an international conference on 'Communication Policies in the EU and Turkey' on October 18. The event, supported by Ankara University, was held within the 'Europa Bridges of Knowledge' programme and in partnership with Ankara University's Faculty of Communication and European Institute for the Media.

EU supports basic education reform activities in Turkey
In August 1997 the Government of Turkey introduced a new basic education law to reform basic education increasing the mandatory period of education from five to eight years. The EU's Basic Education Programme, with a budget of 100 million Euros, has been developed to support this reform policy. Programme implementation began in September 2002. In a conference held at the Bingöl Science High School, Ambassador Hansjörg Kretschmer explained the activities carried out so far and future support for Eastern and Southeastern provinces.

Third edition of 'Turkish-Greek Civic Dialogue' newsletter published
The third edition of a newsletter being prepared in English within the scope of the 'Turkish-Greek Civic Dialogue' project has been published. The newsletter can be found at the Civil Society Development Programme NGO Support Team website (https://florafox.com/ca/calgary-15842). The newsletter covers developments and relations regarding Turkish and Greek NGOs. The European Commission funds the project.

EU launches 'Small Enterprises Loan Programme at Regional Level' Programme
The European Union launched the Small Enterprises Loan Programme (SELP) in Gaziantep on October 14, 2004 to promote lending activities from financial institutions to small enterprises in Turkey. The Programme aims to assist overall economic growth, employment creation and deepening of the financial sector. The EU will support the programme with 20 Million Euros.

Events held under the 'Support for Quality Infrastructure in Turkey'
The EU project 'Support for Quality Infrastructure in Turkey' held three events in İzmir and İstanbul in October. The technical assistance activities -training, seminars, and workshops- are delivered through the Expertise Centre established for the implementation of the project in Ankara.

EUpartnerin'TURKEY
The Kocaeli EU-Turkey Business Centre (ABİGEM) aims to create added value by internationalising its wide range of services, developed through analytical studies to determine the needs of the SMEs. To this end 'EUpartnerin'TURKEY', one of the Centre's new international projects, has begun in the Marmara Region under the name 'EU-Turkish SME Partner Matching Platform'. There will be an opening reception November 3 to introduce 'EUpartnerin'TURKEY'.

Regional Environmental Centre-REC Turkey publishes weekly e-newsletter
The Regional Environmental Centre-REC Turkey started publishing a weekly electronic newsletter. The newsletter contains reports compiled from REC studies, national and international press and press bulletins of different institutions. Those wishing to submit news and announcements of their projects and activities in the bulletin may send their texts not exceeding 300-350 words to each week by Thursday evening.