Turkish Female Physicians’ Education Support Foundation (KAHEV) Honored with 23rd Vehbi Koç Award

The Vehbi Koç Award is an annual award presented in the areas of culture, education and health. This year, the award went to the Turkish Female Physicians’ Education Support Foundation (KAHEV), which was founded by women physicians who understood that “Education is Our Only Prescription. Koç Holding Board Chair Ömer M. Koç presented the award to KAHEV Board Chair Dr. Demet Orhan Başer.

When the Vehbi Koç Foundation was established 55 years ago, it was the first private foundation in Turkey. Each year, the Foundation presents an award honouring individuals and institutions for their role in improving quality of life through valuable contributions in the fields of education, health and culture. This year’s recipient of the Vehbi Koç Award was the Turkish Female Physicians’ Education Support Foundation (KAHEV). KAHEV was chosen by the Board of the Vehbi Koç Foundation from among three candidates recommended by a Selection Committee headed by Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Vural, the recipient of the 20^th Vehbi Koç Award. Other members of the Selection Committee were Prof. Dr. Ebru Aktan Acar, Prof. Dr. Soner Yıldırım, Prof. Dr. Emine Erktin, and Prof. Dr. Yüksel Kavak.

Ömer M. Koç, the Chair of the Board of Directors of Koç Holding, gave the opening speech at the awards ceremony. After being invited to the stage by İdil Bilgen, a student in her final year at Koç University’s Faculty of Medicine who acted as Master of Ceremonies, Koç began his speech as follows: “I would like to take this occasion to pay our respects to our late founder Vehbi Koç, who passed away 28 years ago. Together we commemorate him and the ideals to which he dedicated himself. When the Vehbi Foundation was established 55 years ago as the first private foundation in Turkey, it aimed to revitalize the deeply rooted tradition of charitable foundations. With the motto ‘Our Duty’, we have supported community development, providing educational scholarships to tens of thousands of talented youth. Through the construction of and contributions made to schools, dormitories, hospitals and medical centres, we have improved the lives of millions.” Stressing how education has consistently been the main focus of the Vehbi Koç Foundation, he continued: “With the aim of ensuring equal opportunity in education, to date, our Foundation has provided scholarships to over 50,000 of our youth. The educational institutions we have constructed in every corner of our nation have helped raise generations of modern individuals. Vehbi Koç considered education to be extremely important, as seen in his words, ‘Performing service for the education of youth and the development of the country is fulfilling a debt to humanity and to the nation’.”

Before announcing the recipient of the award, Ömer M. Koç shared some noteworthy data regarding education in Turkey. “According to the latest report prepared by the Educational Reform Initiative, which includes our Foundation among its supporters, approximately 442,000 children were deprived of their right to an education during the 2022-2023 school year. According to the results of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) implemented by the OECD to evaluate 15-year-old students in terms of knowledge and competencies, 18 percent of these students – nearly one in five – did not possess basic skills in mathematics, science and reading. It is only by providing students with the right to an education and ensuring they have access to education will it be possible to guarantee the generations possessing “freedom of opinion, freedom of conscience, and freedom of thought” envisioned by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. For an enlightened future, we need to immediately eradicate our deficiencies in the sphere of education and provide our children with the future that they deserve.”

Ömer M. Koç: “KAHEV should be applauded for its understanding that a modern, thriving society can only be achieved through education”

In his speech, Ömer M. Koç recalled the vision evident in the words of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the great leader and founder of the Turkish Republic, from 100 years ago: “Ladies and Gentleman! It is obvious that our most important and rewarding duties are those pertaining to education. Victory in educational matters is essential. This is the only way in which a nation can be truly blessed.” In announcing KAHEV as the award recipient, Koç said, “Tonight, we are awarding an institution that has adopted this vision and in a short period of six years provided hope for thousands of our students.”

He continued his speech as follows: “KAHEV began as a woman’s movement whose motto was ‘Education is the only prescription’. It was based on the principle of supporting children in youth from all segments of society who are unable to access education or cannot afford an education. In pursuant of these ideals, in 2018, female physicians established a foundation, that was an inspiration to us all. They renovated schools in far-flung corners of the country, equipping them with new classrooms, laboratories, and libraries. 

KAHEV is a very special example of the solidarity of the women of the Turkish Republic. Their understanding that a modern, prosperous society can only be achieved through education is admirable. On this occasion, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the KAHEV founders, Board Chair Dr. Demet Orhan Başer, and everyone at the foundation for their selfless efforts in expanding KAHEV’s activities.”

Following Ömer M. Koç’s speech, a short film highlighting KAHEV’s activities from its founding up until the present was screened before participants. After the film, KAHEV Board Chair Dr. Demet Orhan Başer accepted the 23^rd Vehbi Koç Award from Koç Holding Board Chair Ömer M. Koç.

“We will never cease our efforts for education and for the youth of our nation.”

After accepting the award on behalf of KAHEV, Demet Orhan Başer made a short speech, saying she was honoured and proud that KAHEV had been deemed worthy of the Vehbi Koç Award, which she considered a mark of the organization’s success. “Thanks to the Republic,” she continued, “we had the opportunity to receive an education. After succeeding in our own professions as women of the Republic, we realized that it was time to ‘give back’ through community service. When we joined up on social media to prevent a student from abandoning her education, this ignited a spark that was transformed into a full-blown educational campaign within the health-care community. From that moment on, all the school aid we provided, every scholarship we awarded, gave birth to another. Our foundation’s honorary board and board of directors worked to appropriately channel this energy. We consider education to be a human right, and we want every individual to have equal access to educational opportunities.”

According to Başer, KAHEV’s most important goal for the future is to become a trustworthy, globally recognized institution. “With tens of thousands of female physicians and thousands of supporters in all regions of our country who believe in us, we will never cease in our efforts to support education and the youth of our country. If there is one thing the Vehbi Koç Award tells us, it is that in order to be successful, all you need is to be well intentioned and do the right thing. The projects that our foundation conduct are ones that we believe in wholeheartedly, and we are extremely pleased with the results. With this award and your support, you are sending us this message: ‘If you are conscientious, hardworking, compassionate and just, you will be recognized by the right people. You are on the right road, ladies! Keep it up!’ We cannot thank you enough for reminding us that we are not alone.” Başer also explained that KAHEV will use the award money to establish the “Semahat Arsel Scholarship Fund”, which will enable them to use the support received from the Vehbi Koç Foundation to provide scholarships to children and youth during the upcoming school year.