Cultural expenditures in Türkiye saw a significant rise of 84.7% in 2023 compared to the previous year, reaching 276.3 billion TRY, according to a statement released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) on Monday.

The share of cultural expenditures in the gross domestic product (GDP) stood at 1.0% in 2023.

General government spending accounted for 64.3% of total cultural expenditures, rising by 98.1% to 177.6 billion TRY. Of this, 67.9% came from the central government budget. The largest portion of these expenditures was allocated to architecture, making up 24.4% of government cultural spending.

Turkish households directed 22.0% of their cultural expenditures to data processing equipment, 21.0% to television and related equipment, and 15.0% to books.

Value added by cultural enterprises surged by 94.0%, totaling 108.2 billion TRY. Printing and media reproduction enterprises contributed 22.2%, while film, video, and music production activities accounted for 13.0%. The manufacture of jewelry and related articles made up 12.1%.

Exports of cultural goods grew by 47.7% to 263.7 billion TRY, while imports rose sharply by 87.5%, reaching 149.6 billion TRY. Cultural goods represented 4.3% of total exports and 1.8% of total imports.

Cultural employment increased by 9.0% in 2023, reaching 743,000 people. Among cultural workers, 60.8% were in the 30-54 age group, 28.8% in the 15-29 age group, and 10.4% aged 55 and above.

Handcraft workers made up the largest share of cultural employment at 38.5%, followed by architects, planners, and surveyors (18.7%), creative and performing artists (9.9%), and authors, journalists, and linguists (9.3%).

In cultural employment, 11.1% were involved in architectural and specialized design activities, 5.6% in creative and performing arts, and 4.3% in programming, publishing, and broadcasting activities.

This surge in cultural investment and employment highlights Türkiye's growing commitment to supporting its cultural sectors amid a broader economic landscape. (ILKHA)