Honorary Doctorate from ITU to Ersin Tatar on the 40th Anniversary of TRNC

During the TRNC Day event at ITU, TRNC President Ersin Tatar was presented an honorary doctorate certificate at a ceremony held at Ayazağa Campus on December 6, 2023.

On the 250th anniversary of its establishment, Istanbul Technical University organized a TRNC Day event for the 40th anniversary of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. As part of the event, ITU awarded the title of “Honorary Doctor” to TRNC President Ersin Tatar. The honorary doctorate ceremony was held at ITU Ayazağa Campus Süleyman Demirel Cultural Center on December 6, 2023 with intense participation.

Strong support from ITU to technical education in TRNC

At the honorary doctorate ceremony, which started with a Cyprus-themed music concert and special folk dance performances prepared by ITU Turkish Music State Conservatory (TMSC), ITU Rector Prof. Dr. İsmail Koyuncu said in his speech before the presentation of the honorary doctorate diploma, “As Istanbul Technical University, we cooperate and carry out projects in technical education and infrastructure in order to improve the international status and strong structure of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. As a matter of fact, in this sense, our ITU TRNC Campuses, established in 2008, are one of the best examples in the field of technical education.”

Our Rector Prof. Dr. Koyuncu emphasized that one of the most special implementations in terms of cooperation between ITU and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is the TRNC Water Supply Project: “TRNC Water Supply Project is one of the greatest projects in the world, reflecting our country’s vision for 2023. Every detail of the project, from the planning process to the construction phase, has been overseen by Turkish engineers, most of whom are ITU engineers.”

The importance President Tatar gives to technical organizations and education

According to the reason explained by our Vice-Rector Prof. Dr. Şule Itır Satoğlu on behalf of the ITU Senate, President Tatar was awarded the title of “honorary doctorate” by ITU “in recognition of the importance and support he gives to scientific organizations, scientists and engineering education, as well as developing diplomatic relations with the Turkish world and related communities.”

President Ersin Tatar received his honorary doctorate certificate from our Rector Prof. Dr. İsmail Koyuncu and delivered a speech expressing his thanks. In his speech, President Tatar touched upon the importance and historical role of ITU for Türkiye and underlined that the University is also very important for TRNC: “Today, we are at ITU, which was founded in 1773 and has a history of 250 years. I always remember the founders of this university and those who brought this university to this day. I wish mercy to those who have passed away.”

Documentary screening and stand visits 

A documentary screening was held before the honorary doctorate ceremony at ITU. ITU students watched the documentary called “Children of the Struggle,” which depicts the great tragedy experienced by Turkish Cypriots in the 1960s through the accounts of the eyewitnesses of the period.

TRNC President Ersin Tatar, together with our Rector Prof. Dr. Koyuncu, visited the stands of project teams and clubs such as GAE, Rover Team, and Gökbörü, which were designed by ITU students in various engineering fields and won many awards and first prizes in TEKNOFEST as well as in international competitions.

Who is Ersin Tatar?

Born in Nicosia in 1960, Ersin Tatar graduated from the University of Cambridge, Faculty of Economics in 1982. After working as a financial consultant in the UK headquarters of Price Waterhouse in 1982-1986, he worked at Polly Peck in UK in 1986-1991 and as finance manager at FMC-Nurol Defense Industry in Ankara in 1991-1992. Having served as Financial Director at Show TV in 1992-2001, Tatar launched Kanal T, the first private television of TRNC. Ersin Tatar was elected deputy in 2009, and afterwards became Minister of Finance in the same year. He served as minister until 2013. He entered the parliament in 2009, 2013 and 2018 elections. Elected as the Leader of UBP in 2018, Ersin Tatar became the Prime Minister of TRNC in 2019. In 2020, he won the presidential election and became the 5^th President of TRNC.