The Turkish government has allocated 2.7 billion liras (approx. US$460 million) to government foundations and associations, for the first three months of 2019, Birgün newspaper reported citing the Ministry of Finance data.

The funded organizations include the Ensar Foundation, an Islamic organization; the İlim Yayma Foundation, one of the founders of which is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan; and the Turkey Youth and Education Service Foundation (TÜRGEV), which Erdoğan founded in 1996.

But after the local government elections that were held recently in Turkey, the government-linked foundations and associations have become a subject of discussion because they, too, are recipients of grants which the Istanbul and Ankara Municipalities provide, but where Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has lost in the elections.