Urban Poverty Caused by the Immigrants: A Challenge to the Local Government in Bursa, Turkey

This study presents the industrialization and urbanization processes of Bursa, considering the role of local governments regarding their supply of opportunities for the urban poor in order to improve their livelihoods during these processes. The study has focused on three different kinds of immigrant populations: immigrants from eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey, immigrants from Balkan countries and Syrian refugees. They all have been experiencing the challenges of such rapid urbanization. They are both the reason and the victims of this mostly illegal urban sprawl of the city. Besides urban regeneration studies, attempts for the social inclusion of these immigrant populations are also examined via an archival analysis carried out for the city of Bursa along with the interviews conducted with the key actors of the local governments. Although the conclusions are based on the case study, they are also relevant to other rapidly industrializing cities, which harbor populations of both immigration and domestic migrations.