President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, an advocate of incentives to increase the population, raised the issue again while speaking with artists and youth at an event in Istanbul on Saturday.
In remarks published on Sunday, Erdoğan invited society to contribute to increasing the numbers as the country faces a future population crisis.
“I am a grandfather of nine, and this is really something beautiful. I always tell the couples to have at least three children, and this is a must to build a strong family,” Erdoğan said in response to questions about his thoughts on population challenges in Türkiye.
Türkiye has declared 2025 as the “Year of the Family,” signaling urgent concern over the country’s declining fertility rates. Erdoğan characterized the current demographic trend as a “disaster,” citing Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) data showing the fertility rate fell to 1.48 in 2024.
“We have to multiply. This is not solely our desire. This is what Allah ordered us and what the Prophet (Muhammad) told Muslims. The prophet says he would be proud of his ummah's number surpassing that of other societies. We declared 2025 as the Year of the Family, and as Muslims, we want to increase the population of our country,” he said.
Erdoğan’s “three-children” advice started long before official figures gave an alarming projection for Türkiye’s future. The president acknowledged that Türkiye still has a long way to go and developments were “not good.”
“We see even people closest to us opposing increasing the population. This is worrying,” he lamented.
The government placed family policy at the center of its domestic agenda in 2025 as declining birth rates, delayed marriage and population aging emerged as long-term challenges. As part of the government’s initiatives, family support mechanisms were expanded nationwide. An interest-free marriage loan of TL150,000 ($3,492) was extended to areas outside earthquake-affected regions, offering newly married couples a two-year grace period and a four-year repayment plan. Birth assistance programs were also revised, introducing monthly child support alongside increased one-time payments.
Under the system, mothers receive TL 5,000 for a first child ($115), TL 1,500 per month for a second child and TL 5,000 per month for third and subsequent children until age 5.
