Türkiye’s former Economy Minister Kemal Derviş breathed his last Monday in the U.S., where he was receiving treatment, local media reported.
Derviş, who passed away at the age of 74, is said to have been undergoing treatment for Parkinson’s in the U.S. for a while.
The former minister, who was a U.K. and U.S.-educated economist, was appointed Türkiye’s minister of economic affairs during the 2000-2001 financial crisis, a post he held until 2002.
He was elected to Parliament during the Nov. 3, 2002 elections as a deputy of the Republican People’s Party (CHP).
Derviş had a long career in international development and economics. He held several high-level positions at the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
He received his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in economics from the London School of Economics (LSE) in the U.K. He completed his doctorate at Princeton University in the U.S.
Derviş delivered lectures at the Middle East Technical University (METU) and Princeton University between 1973 and 1977, before he joined the World Bank the same year.
He was promoted to the role of vice president responsible for the Middle East and North Africa affairs in 1996.
Derviş was invited to Türkiye following the financial crises of November 2000 and February 2001, and he resigned from his duties at the World Bank that he had held for 22 years.
Derviş assumed the role of economy minister in the coalition government under former Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit.
He resigned in August 2002 after a disagreement with Devlet Bahçeli, the leader of Türkiye's Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and deputy prime minister of the time.
Derviş was appointed head of the UNDP in 2005. He was succeeded by Helen Clark, the former prime minister of New Zealand, in 2009.
