he served as the founding Chairman of the Advisory Board for “Istanbul 2010 Project”, under which, Istanbul was chosen as a European Capital of Culture for the year 2010.
Egemen Bagis, former State Minister and Chief Negotiator for EU talks, has been appointed as the head of newly created EU Ministry in Turkey’s 61st government.
According to information on his personal internet site, Egemen Bagis was first elected to Parliament in 2002 as a deputy of Istanbul. He was appointed as Minister for EU Affairs on January 2009 and has been working for full membership negotiations of Turkey since then.
Bagis was the party’s Vice Chairman in charge of Foreign Affairs and as a Vice Chairman, he had been a member of AK Party’s Central Executive Committee, the party’s highest body until 2009.
Bagis was the party’s contact person for international relations and diplomacy. He directed and coordinated the party’s national and international network and local branches on foreign policy matters. He also coordinated the flow of key global developments to the party leadership.
As a patron of arts, he served as the founding Chairman of the Advisory Board for “Istanbul 2010 Project”, under which, Istanbul was chosen as a European Capital of Culture for the year 2010.
Egemen Bagis is also a founding board member of two prominent museums: Istanbul Museum of Modern Art and Santral Museum of Art & Industry.
In June 2006 he was also awarded the Italian Cavaliere State Recognition.
Bagis in the 1990s was the President of the Federation of Turkish American Associations in New York, an umbrella organization.
A popular civic leader, Bagis is the only President in this organizations’ history, who was unanimously re-elected for two terms. He has also served as the Advisory Board member of Turkish Citizens Abroad, a government body based in Ankara.
Bagis was born in Bingol, Turkey, in 1970. His family originates from the neighboring Siirt province, where his late father, Abdullah Bagis served as mayor from 1974 through 1979.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Resources Management as well as a Master of Public Administration degree, both from the Baruch College of The City University of New York.
He is married to Beyhan Bagis, and they have two children.
AA