CoHE President Özvar Attends 4th Antalya Diplomacy Forum
April 11, 2025 / Antalya
Erol Özvar, President of the Council of Higher Education, visited Antalya
to attend the 4th Antalya Diplomacy Forum. He attended the opening ceremony
of ADF 2025, which was organized this year under the auspices of President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with the main theme “Embracing Diplomacy in a
Diverging World”.
In addition to President Erdoğan, his wife Emine Erdoğan, Vice President
Cevdet Yılmaz and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, more than 20 heads of state
and government, 74 ministers, nearly 450 high-level representatives and
participants from more than 140 countries attended the ADF. Özvar
participated in the roundtable session titled “Silent Superpower:
Reflections of Science and Artificial Intelligence Technology in
International Relations”.
In his speech, Özvar shared information about the AI programs initiated at
universities and emphasized that AI is an encouraging field for all parties
in the development of international cooperation.
Stating that Türkiye has taken decisive steps in the field of AI and
digital transformation, Özvar said, “As the Council of Higher Education, we
are carrying out comprehensive initiatives to strengthen our national
capacity in the field of artificial intelligence and to promote an ethical,
collaborative and forward-looking digital vision in higher education.”
He stated that the responsibility of higher education today extends beyond
national borders and that scientific cooperation has become a necessity in
a world facing transnational challenges such as climate change, epidemics,
food insecurity, energy transitions. Özvar noted: “Universities can play a
facilitating role in the realization of such collaborations. Universities
are expected to prioritize the national strategies and interests of their
own countries. However, international problems can only be addressed
through international cooperation. At this point, promoting scientific
cooperation, including cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence,
is no longer just an option, but a necessity.
In light of this, we set up a working group on AI to address all aspects of
this scientific breakthrough. We came up with some ideas, which eventually
evolved into a strategic plan. This plan will continue until 2028.”
Özvar stated that they opened new programs based on software and artificial
intelligence at universities in 2023 and said, “We launched these programs
because AI requires a broader education in areas such as informatics, data
science and analytics, cognitive processes and machine learning,
information security technologies, programming and software engineering,
and cyber security and autonomous systems. There are currently 84
AI-related education programs offered by 20 Turkish universities.
All these associate and bachelor's degree programs are open to all
candidates who will take the university entrance exam. In addition,
international students coming to Türkiye to study at Turkish universities
can also enroll in these programs. We attach great importance to making AI
education open and inclusive.”
Özvar emphasized that with the support of the Council of Higher Education,
universities are allocating more resources to research in fields related to
artificial intelligence and said, “Newly developed tools based on
artificial intelligence by our universities have started to be used in
education, agricultural activities and some industrial sectors in Türkiye.”
Stating that AI-enabled tools such as early warning systems, climate
modeling platforms and disaster response algorithms can be used by
governments and international organizations to tackle common concerns,
Özvar continued:
“The importance of AI-powered solutions to the environment, energy, war,
famine and epidemics that we face as a global community is indisputable.
However, we must also pay attention to the risks and threats that
artificial intelligence may bring to the international system. When
AI-based systems are used without transparency, they can lead to
misperceptions and strategic miscalculations between states.”
Underlining the need for a collective global effort to overcome the risks
that artificial intelligence may cause, Özvar emphasized the importance of
strategic investment in science, technology and education.
CoHE President Erol Özvar held a meeting with Deputy Chairman of the
Council of Ministers of Turkmenistan Hocamurat Geldimuradov at the Antalya
Diplomacy Forum.
During the meeting, higher education cooperation between Türkiye and
Turkmenistan was reviewed. Özvar also met with Mustafa Trampa, Mufti of
Xanthi and the accompanying delegation.