The Istanbul Youth Festival, a five-day event sponsored by private and state-run companies, started yesterday. The event, dubbed the largest of its kind, caters to the country's young population with a diverse array of activities, from concerts to sports events, exhibitions, games and panels. More than 1 million people are expected to visit.

At the opening of the festival, Bilal Erdoğan, the head of the festival's board of advisers, said the festival was the "result of great labor" by its young organizers and "richer" in its content compared to last year. He said the festival was not only a fun event but will also host a series of speakers and representatives of companies and institutions to inspire youths.

The festival is at the Eurasia Show and Art Center with separate indoors events and open-air events in a space of 50,000 square meters.

The event brings Turkey's beloved brands, NGOs and public enterprises to the public though art exhibitions, workshops, sport activities, panel sessions and live concerts.

Under the sponsorship of Türk Telekom and the Turkuvaz Media Group among others, popular Turkish singers Murat Boz, Teoman, Fatma Turgut, Berkay, Cem Belevi, Evrencan Gündüz, Oğuzhan Koç, Gripin, Jabbar, Manuş Baba, Sufle and Imera will give live performances to keep the young spirit of the festival alive. Sponsored by Borsa Istanbul, BitTalks will bring 30 important keynote speakers to inspire youngsters and share experiences of the most-established names in different sectors.

The festival also offers robotics workshops and a chance to visit Turkey's biggest digital exhibition. As a part of the festival, Ziraat Bank's Art Collection will bring the "Light and Color" digital exhibition, displaying Turkey's first 5K-resolution exhibition technology to the festival area. Moreover, there will be traveling libraries and art exhibitions.

It also addresses different sports branches. One event will feature the top directors of the Turkish Basketball Federation. The president of the federation and former NBA player Hidayet Türkoğlu, CEO and former national basketballer Ömer Onan and the National Basketball Team's manager and former national basketball player Kerem Tunçeri will come together. On May 6, the festival will host a basketball tournament. In other sports events, participants will have a chance to experience a five-a-side football competition, an archery tag contest and e-sports competitions.

Human resources companies will have stands at the festival for workshops and panel sessions to inform participants about job opportunities and future jobs. Prominent entrepreneurs are also on hand to speak about entrepreneurship opportunities.