The U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) on Tuesday revealed a series of fresh initiatives aimed at bolstering the socio-economic recovery of southern Türkiye, which was destroyed by twin earthquakes.

These efforts coincide with the one-year mark since the tragic events, which claimed the lives of 53,537 individuals and displaced 3.3 million others across 11 provinces in the southern region.

The initiatives include the establishment of a women's entrepreneurship center in Kahramanmaras, the creation of a regional center for prostheses and other assistive devices for people with disabilities in Malatya and the opening of two "accessible community centers" for the elderly and disabled in Adiyaman and Hatay, according to a statement.

"We stand in solidarity with the affected communities and reaffirm our commitment to support recovery efforts," UNDP resident representative Louisa Vinton said in the statement.

Vinton met with earthquake survivors during a weeklong visit to the four most affected provinces to commemorate the first anniversary of the disaster.

The new UNDP initiatives are part of a $50 million program focused on restoring care services for vulnerable groups, reviving livelihoods and business activity, improving municipal management of waste and earthquake debris, and protecting and restoring endangered cultural heritage.

"UNDP has contributed many tangible improvements, but we recognize that full recovery of the region requires a commitment of years," Vinton said.

Swedish-funded $10 million program of "earthquake recovery grants," seen as the centerpiece of UNDP socioeconomic efforts, awarded to 4,616 small businesses across the 11 most affected provinces, the UNDP's office in Türkiye said in a press release.

It said the program attracted 23,648 applications and helped them generate a "trickle-up" effect designed to catalyze a wider economic revival.

The U.N. development agency said it has provided vocational training to more than 1,200 earthquake survivors, offering more than 40 short courses in high-demand sectors, such as foreign trade, culinary arts, software-driven carpet design, welding, Computer Numerical Control (CNC) operation and call-center staffing.

As the earthquakes both disrupted the provision of care services for the elderly, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups, as well as left many thousands of people with new disabilities and millions with lasting trauma, the UNDP, in collaboration with the UK fund, partnered with municipalities to build and equip "accessible community centers" in Adıyaman, Hatay and Kahramanmaras, according to the agency.

The UNDP said it worked with the Family and Social Services Ministry to construct, equip and staff centers providing rehabilitation for the elderly and disabled in the container cities in Adıyaman and Kahramanmaras.

With funding from Korea, the UNDP launched work in Malatya on Feb. 5 to establish a center for the production of orthopedic and prosthetic devices and expand the existing regional center for wheelchair and other assistive device repair, the agency said.

With funding from Croatia, the UNDP said it is currently rebuilding an elementary school in Hatay with a focus on creating a model for inclusive education, with additional schools to be refurbished in Adıyaman, Kahramanmaras and Malatya to ensure that children with disabilities can attend alongside their peers.

The collapse of buildings due to the earthquakes created a huge volume of debris, and the UNDP is currently procuring the equipment for model rubble recycling facilities to be built in Hatay, Kahramanmaras and Malatya, thanks to funding from Japan and Kuwait, the agency said.

The UNDP said it supplied more than $3 million in waste management equipment and other urgent supplies to the most affected municipalities.

In a bid to help protect endangered cultural heritage in the region, the UNDP delivered containers to archaeology museums to house precious artifacts. Cameras and drones were also supplied to aid in the documentation of damaged cultural heritage assets, the agency said.

According to the UNDP, the cost of the disaster-related cultural heritage restoration was estimated at over $2 billion, and therefore it launched a global crowdfunding campaign on Dec. 8, 2023, with the slogan "Save the Legacy" and has secured $4 million to date.