The role of social assistance and solidarity fountions in prevention of women's poverty: The case of Düzce province

The concept of poverty is a multidimensional term that varies from person to person and from country to country. Therefore, there is no consensus on the definition of poverty. The phenomenon of poverty, which can be defined as the state of lacking the economic capacity to meet basic needs and experiencing deprivation at a minimum standard of living, has existed throughout human history. Since the 1990s, research has been conducted on this issue, and it has been recognized as a global problem with the poverty report published by the World Bank in 1990. With its recognition as a global problem, countries have started to develop various policies to combat poverty. In this regard, the Social Assistance and Solidarity Promotion Law (SYDTK) No. 3294, which came into effect on June 14, 1986, and the Social Aid and Solidarity Promotion Fund (SYDTF) were established as the first institutional structure in Turkey to combat poverty. Social Aid and Solidarity Foundations were established in each province and district to achieve the objectives of the established Fund. The first part of this study examines the phenomenon and types of poverty, as well as the concept of social assistance. The second part focuses on women's poverty, its causes, and social policy issues. The third part provides general information about the structure of Social Aid and Solidarity Foundations, which are mechanisms for combating poverty. The final part, which includes field research, provides information about the services provided by the Duzce Social Aid and Solidarity Foundation, and examines the findings obtained from a survey conducted with 385 women who received social assistance from the Foundation. This study aims to examine the demographic characteristics of women receiving social assistance, their socio-economic status, the types of assistance they benefit from, and assess the effects and visibility of the aid from the perspective of women. Additionally, a situational evaluation is conducted to determine whether these aids are effective in preventing female poverty. The perception of women regarding the effectiveness of the social assistance provided by the Social Aid and Solidarity Foundations (SYDFs) is also measured.