Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan appointed Vahit Kirişçi -- a former member of Turkey's parliament from the ruling AK Party -- to replace Bekir Pakdemirli as the agriculture and forestry minister, the Official Gazette said on Friday.
The 62-year-old Kirişçi has a bachelor's degree in agricultural engineering and a doctoral degree from Cranfield University in the UK. He became a professor in 2003.
Kirişçi was a deputy in the 22nd parliament of Turkey.
He became a member of the Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Commission and served as deputy chairman.
Previously, he served as chairman of the Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Affairs Committee of the Grand National Assembly of Turkiye.
The Official Gazette said Bekir Pakdemirli had asked for relief from the ministerial duty.
