History of the Foundation

The Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation was established as an international organization at the initiative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, with the support of the Presidents of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and the Republic of Türkiye.

The Charter of the Foundation was adopted at the Bishkek Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States (Turkic Council) in 2012. The Foundation began its actual operations in 2015 with the signing of the Host Country Agreement with the Government of Azerbaijan. Thus, the headquarters of the Foundation is located in the city of Baku.

Following the approval at the end of 2021 of the Protocol on the scale of mandatory contributions of member states to the Foundation’s budget, the Foundation commenced full-fledged operations as an international organization in 2022. In the same year, member states each delegated two representatives for the formation of the Foundation’s international staff.

In May 2025, during the Informal Summit of the Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States (Budapest), a decision was made on the accession of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the Foundation as a full member.

It should be noted that Hungary was granted observer status in 2019, while Turkmenistan received observer status in 2025.

Presidents of the Foundation are appointed for a four-year term from each member state in alphabetical order. The first President of the Foundation, Mrs. Gunay Afandiyeva from Azerbaijan, served in this position from 2015 to 2023.

The current President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation is Prof. Dr. Aktoty Raimkulova (Republic of Kazakhstan), who was appointed to this position on November 3, 2023, in Astana during the 10th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States, in accordance with the decision of the Heads of Turkic States.

 

Mandate of the Foundation

 

According to its Charter, the main objectives of the Foundation are to preserve, study, and promote Turkic culture and heritage by providing support and funding for various activities, projects, and programs.

To achieve these objectives, the Foundation:

• Finances initiatives aimed at preserving, protecting, restoring, and promoting Turkic culture and heritage.
• Supports the resolution of scientific and technical issues related to the protection, restoration, and promotion of Turkic culture and heritage.
• Contributes to the training of specialists in the field of protection, restoration, and promotion of Turkic culture and heritage.
• Organizes seminars, workshops, conferences, congresses, field research, and exhibitions.
• Assists in the preparation of electronic and printed scientific publications.
• Sponsors competitions, festivals, tournaments, and other events.
• Supports the revival, preservation, and development of traditional crafts and applied arts in regions inhabited by Turkic peoples.
• Provides assistance to artisans, artists, and other creative professionals in protecting their intellectual property rights.

         The Foundation serves as a key institution within the framework of Turkic cooperation organizations (OTS, TURKSOY, TURKPA, Turkic Academy, Turkic Investment Fund) in matters related to the protection, scientific study, preservation, restoration, and international promotion of the rich cultural heritage of the Turkic world, as well as strengthening cultural and humanitarian cooperation among Turkic states.