Who We Are}

Who We Are

Marmara Municipalities Union (MMU) is the first and the largest regional Local Government Association in Türkiye with 192 members from the Marmara Region which is the center of scientific, cultural and high-value-added activities as well as of commerce, finance and industry. MMU’s center is located in Istanbul. The Marmara Region inhabits around 26 million residents, making up one third of the population of Türkiye. At the center of the region is the Sea of Marmara, which is an inland sea connecting Türkiye’s Asian and European parts.

Since its foundation in 1975, MMU has played an important role in the formation of a culture of agreement and collaboration among mayors and council members elected from different political parties, the development of coordination and cooperation between municipalities, increasing the authority and resources of municipalities, and representing municipalities at the international arena.

MMU carries on activities in areas such as environment, urbanization, migration and social cohesion, local diplomacy, local economic development, resilience, urban technology and innovation. On these areas, MMU’s activities include training, consulting, corporate capacity building, raising awareness, supporting scientific researches, advocating local democracy, and organizing events and meetings which gather relevant stakeholders.

Consisting of 192 member municipalities, Marmara Municipalities Union operates across 11 provinces, 6 of which are metropolitan municipalities (Balikesir, Bilecik, Bursa, Çanakkale, Edirne, Istanbul, Kırklareli, Kocaeli, Sakarya, Tekirdağ and Yalova).

History

45 municipalities on the shores of the Marmara Sea and the Straits came together and decided to act jointly in 1973 with the aim of adopting the concept of democratic local government, conducting the central-local relations within the framework of democratic principles, expanding the initiative area of local administrations and finding solutions to environmental problems, and especially the pollution of the Marmara Sea.  As a result of these meetings, it was decided to establish a “Union” under the scope of the 7th Chapter (Articles 133-148) of the Municipal Law No. 1580. Marmara Municipalities Union was established on 25 April 1975 under the name of “Marmara and Bosporus Municipalities Union” following a 2-year preparation period. The center of the Union was originally chosen as Izmit; then it was moved to Istanbul upon the decision of the General Assembly of the Union dated 25 May 1977. The name of the Union was changed to “Marmara Municipalities Union” on 30 April 2009.

MMU PRESIDENTS FROM ESTABLISHMENT TO PRESENT DAY
NAME PERIOD
Mustafa BOZBEY 2024-
Tahir BÜYÜKAKIN 2019-2024
Mevlüt UYSAL 2017-2019
Recep ALTEPE 2009-2017
Kadir TOPBAŞ 2004-2009
Hasan AKGÜN 2002-2004
Ahmet BAHADIRLI 1999-2002
Sefa SİRMEN 1996-1999
Sami GÖKDENİZ 1995-1996
Ali Talip ÖZDEMİR 1994-1995
Nurettin SÖZEN 1989-1994
Bedrettin DALAN 1984-1989
Mehmet Ali BÜKLÜ 1980-1980
Reşat TABAK 1978-1980
Ahmet İSVAN 1977-1977
Erol KÖSE 1975-1977
Ahmet ENÖN (Founder) 1973-1975
MMU SECRETARY GENERALS FROM ESTABLISHMENT TO PRESENT DAY
FULL NAME INITIATION RESIGNATION
M. Cemil ARSLAN 19.02.2014  
Züver ÇETİNKAYA 16.04.2012 17.02.2014
Recep BOZLAĞAN 20.02.2007 16.04.2012
Halil ÜNLÜ 2003 2007
Fikret TOKSÖZ 1992 2002
Devlet ÖZTÜRE 1990 1992
Halil ÜNLÜ 1980 1990
Selahattin YILDIRIM 1977 1980
Avni ÖZTÜRE 1975 1977