“The best of you is the one who is best to his family. And I am the best of you to my family.” (Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 63)

Honourable Minister, Deputy Minister, Director General,

Our Esteemed Members, Ladies

Esteemed Members of the Press,

This wise saying of our Prophet in fact summarizes the spirit of our gathering here today. To the extent that a person is good to his family, he contributes to the building of a good society. A strong family is the foundation of a strong society; and a strong society is the assurance of a strong state.

Our esteemed President's declaration of 2025 as the “Year of the Family” is a sign that this understanding, which places the family at the centre, has been embraced on a social scale. From here I once again offer my gratitude to our Honourable President for his pioneering will in carrying the family to the centre of state policies. As MÜSİAD, we are the voluntary bearers of this vision.

The Family: The Foundation of Our Civilization

In our civilization the family is not merely a roof, but at the same time a school, a shelter, a root and the building of a future. A child's first smile, a mother's prayer and a father's sacrifice all come to life in the family hearth.

Sometimes you see in the eyes of a colleague the anxiety of “My wife is going to give birth, will I be able to make it in time?” Or you sense the worry of a young person about to marry: “How am I going to set up my home?” The signature put here today will turn the worry in those eyes into joy and the anxiety in those hearts into peace of mind.

The Power of the Campaign

This protocol is one of the strongest field implementations of the “Year of the Family” vision declared by our President. The fact that our 1,025 companies, which have provided more than 300 thousand jobs in a short time, have become parties to this protocol shows how much we as the MÜSİAD community value the family.

By providing support of 3 minimum wages to an employee who is about to marry and of 2 minimum wages to one who has a new child, these companies demonstrate that they protect the family not only in word but also in deed. This is the strongest indication that the business world lends its shoulder to social peace as well, beyond production.

Cooperation with Our Ministry

Honourable Minister, it is an occasion of honour for us to realize this cooperation with our Ministry of Family and Social Services under your leadership. Because we know that every step that protects the family in fact also protects Türkiye's tomorrows. On this occasion I also thank you personally, above all, and all your team colleagues who have owned this project from the very beginning and undertaken its coordination meticulously.

Our Message

From here I would like to address all our members and the business world:

The essential duty of the business world is not only to produce profit. The business world is at the same time responsible for investing in the values, the future and the peace of society. In your presence I thank all our members who act with this awareness of responsibility and all our employers who have embraced this project.

The investment made in the family is the most profitable investment made in the future. Come, let us make our workplaces family-friendly. Come, let us not leave this protocol limited to a signature; let us turn it into a social mobilization that spreads to every area of life.

Closing

I would like to end my words with this truth:

The peace rising from the hearth of a home is the light reflected upon the future of a nation. The signature we put today will strengthen that light even further; by protecting the family, it will make Türkiye stronger, more peaceful and more prosperous.

I wish that this valuable protocol may be a means of goodness, and I offer my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has contributed, above all our Honourable Minister.

With my respects.