Gülsüm Akbulut joins FPI as the Director of Global and Turkish Economic Studies.

Gülsüm Akbulut completed her undergraduate and master studies in economics at Middle East Technical University (METU). She earned her second master’s degree in International Politics from the Free University of Brussels. She is currently working on her doctoral thesis on structural financial power in the Department of International Relations at METU.

Akbulut began her professional career in 1989 at the Undersecretariat of Treasury in 1989, after a brief experience at Turk Eximbank. Between 1996-1999, she worked as an Economic Counselor at the Permanent Representation of Turkey to the EU in Brussels. From 2000-2005, she served as Head of Department and Deputy Director General at the Undersecretariat of Treasury. From 2005-2013, she was Director General for Economic Research at the Undersecretariat of Treasury. During her eight-year career as Director General, she worked on economic and financial issues of Türkiye,  short- and medium-term macroeconomic forecasts, and structural reform policies. As a member of the Debt Management Committee, she took part in the decision-making on the sustainability of Türkiye’s public debt. From 2013-2016, she worked at the World Bank as Alternate Executive Director. In this position, she represented the country group of Turkey, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Slovakia, and Slovenia at the WBG Board. From 2017-2018, she was the Head of the External Relations Department at the Prime Ministry. Due to the dissolution of the Prime Ministry as a result of the constitutional amendment, she was appointed as an advisor to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.

Akbulut, who has participated in various international panels, conferences and meetings, retired from public service in 2022.  She is currently working as Director of Global and Turkish Economic Studies at the Foreign Policy Institute.