Türkiye has created a new 112 Emergency Call and Coordination General Directorate within the Interior Ministry, under a presidential decree published in the Official Gazette (Resmî Gazete) on Saturday, Bursada Bugün and Muğla Gazetesi reported. Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi announced the step on social media in the afternoon, İhlas News Agency (İHA) and Aksiyon reported.
What the decree changes
According to the decree, as reported by both outlets, the new general directorate will coordinate 112 emergency services across the country and work on improving the system’s technological infrastructure.
The existing 112 Emergency Call Centre directorates in the provinces are renamed Provincial 112 Emergency Call and Coordination Directorates. Officials currently serving as 112 call centre directors are deemed appointed to the new posts without any further procedure, the reports said. The decree also refers to the use of artificial intelligence in the emergency call system.
Minister: about 100 million calls a year
In his statement, Çiftçi said the 112 centres in all 81 provinces had been turned into standalone provincial directorates attached to the governorships, İHA and Aksiyon reported.
He said the system employs about 15,000 staff, answers around 100 million calls a year and coordinates more than 31 million cases. Planned improvements include AI-supported technologies and stronger communication infrastructure, according to both reports.
"We know that every second counts in emergencies," Çiftçi said, adding that the aim was to respond faster to citizens’ calls for help.
Sources
- Bakan Çiftçi: "Bakanlığımız bünyesinde 112 Acil Çağrı ve Koordinasyon Genel Müdürlüğü kuruldu" (Haberler.com / İHA)
- Bakanlık bünyesinde 112 acil çağrı sistemi için yeni koordinasyon genel müdürlüğü (Aksiyon)
- Resmi Gazete’de yayımlandı! Üç bakanlığa yeni birimler (Bursada Bugün)
- Resmî Gazete’de Yayımlandı: 112’de Yeni Dönem Başlıyor (Muğla Gazetesi)
Photo: Zalasem1 / CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
