The local turn in migrant practices in Turkey: Syrians in Bursa

Since the introduction of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 and the EU-Turkey Refugee Statement of 16 March 2016, local actors in Turkey have become more active in strengthening the processes of integration of Syrian migrants under temporary protection. Based on the findings of research conducted in the rural districts of Bursa, a neighbouring city of Istanbul, as well as extensive desk research including the scrutiny of legal texts, policies at national and local levels, and secondary resources, this chapter analyses how integration policies, practices, and responses have evolved at both central and local levels since the mass migration of Syrians to Turkey. The chapter’s main premise is that the local turn in migration governance in Turkey has a neoliberal logic based on the idea of the delegation of responsibilities by central state actors to local actors without financial and administrative support.