Reverting Structural Reforms in Turkey: Towards an Illiberal Economic Governance?

Executive Summary

Following a comprehensive reform process that began in 2001, the Turkish economy not only recovered from a severe economic crisis but also achieved renewed growth while demonstrating a degree of resilience against the global financial crisis. Structural reforms played a crucial role in establishing new economic governance frameworks and strengthening market institutions against external shocks.

This paper argues, however, that some of these structural reforms proved to be temporary and were gradually reversed, leaving the Turkish economy vulnerable to fundamental risks. The study examines the political dynamics behind this process of reform reversal and highlights how political factors influenced the sustainability of economic transformation.