On 14th – 15th April 2016, PODEM convened two workshops in Diyarbakır and Urfa with the participation of business people from the region in order to discuss the difficulties in the region amid conflict and discuss steps towards peace and socioeconomic development.

In the meetings, which brought together select business representatives from the region, business people from South Africa and Colombia shared their experiences on the role they played in the countries’ respective peace processes and socio-economic development during the post-conflict period.

The meetings also provided a platform to discuss projects for the social and economic development of the East and Southeastern regions in medium to long term.