Diyanet single-handedly surpassed ministries

With the publication of the Medium-Term Program ( MTP ) in the Official Gazette, budget allocations for 2026 were also announced. The total 2026 appropriation proposal ceilings of public administrations within the scope of the general budget have reached 17 trillion 250 billion 971.1 million lira.

The 2026-2028 Medium Term Program (MTP) projected an 18.1 percent increase in the initial appropriation of 14 trillion 605 billion 800.9 million lira in the 2025 budget. The Ministry of Treasury and Finance, which has the largest share of the budget, has had its appropriation increased by 24 percent compared to the 2025 initial appropriation, reaching 8 trillion 196 billion 699.6 million lira. The appropriations of many public administrations within the general budget were increased above the 28.5 percent inflation forecast in the Medium Term Program.

The Ministry of National Education followed, with its appropriation increased by 33.9 percent to 1,943,515,700,000 Turkish Lira. The Directorate of Religious Affairs' budget, meanwhile, surpassed that of many other ministries. The budget allocated to the Directorate of Religious Affairs was set at 174,389,300,000 Turkish Lira, a 34 percent increase compared to the 2025 initial appropriation.

The total budget allocation for the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and the Ministry of Industry and Technology remained at 173.033 billion Turkish Lira. This resulted in the Directorate of Religious Affairs receiving a larger allocation than the combined budgets of these three ministries.

The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources received an allocation of 23 billion 440.7 million lira, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism 50 billion 845 million lira, and the Ministry of Industry 99 billion 47.2 million lira.

The Ministry of National Defense's budget was increased by 31.9 percent to 822 billion 930.1 million lira. The budget allocated to the Directorate of Communications was increased by 22.9 percent to 7 billion 564.2 million lira.

Earthquake Allowances Reduced

Meanwhile, following the earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023, and affected 11 provinces, the earthquake expenditure appropriation added to the budget was reduced. The total earthquake expenditure is expected to be 185 billion 658 million 895 thousand lira in 2026.

The Medium Term Program (MTP) predicted that 489 billion TL would be spent on earthquake relief by the end of this year.

On the other hand, the 2026 allocation of the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, whose allocation was increased after the earthquakes, was determined as 373 million 452.6 thousand lira.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency's allocation, which was 671 billion 317 million TL in 2024, was reduced to 266 billion 923.3 million TL in 2025 before the earthquake effects subsided. The 2026 allocation was increased by 39.9 percent.