OPT: Reaching and teaching thousands of children – USAID report/Non-UN document

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

OPT: Reaching and teaching thousands of children

By Fadi Khoury, Project Management Specialist
USAID-West Bank/Gaza Mission 

Education Development Challenges 

The most serious challenge in the Palestinian basic education system is maintaining high access levels without diminished quality. Many schools in the West Bank and Gaza are overcrowded, with an average of 50 students per class. Moreover, a large number of school buildings are inadequate in size and condition. Despite the challenges, Palestinian education officials are committed to improving the quality of education for all Palestinian children.

USAID's Contribution 

Through its West Bank/Gaza Mission, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has assisted in improving educational opportunities for thousands of Palestinian children. Since 1999, USAID has invested more than $32 million in the basic education sector in the West Bank and Gaza via its Community Services Program.

Between 1999 and 2003, USAID financed the construction of about 30 percent of the additional classroom space identified by the Palestinian Ministry of Education as being needed in the 1999-2004 period. In addition, USAID has invested in building and renovating other educational facilities, such as kindergartens, and providing as playgrounds, retaining walls, fences and sanitary units at schools. Finally, USAID has provided capacity building training for Palestinian schoolteachers.

Community Priorities 

One of the key aspects of the Community Services Program is its reliance on communities themselves to identify priorities. Over the four phases of USAID's Community Services Program, approximately 33 percent of actual program costs have been directed to improvements in Palestinian basic education, primarily school buildings and classroom renovations. The fact that education has been the single largest area of investment reflects the tremendous commitment of the Palestinian people to basic education for their children.

Building Schools Generates Employment 

While ensuring adequate classroom space for Palestinian children, USAID's school construction brings much-needed jobs to communities where unemployment is at very high levels. Since 1999, USAID has generated more that 550,000 person-days of employment in this way, which is roughly equivalent to providing about 2,150 full-time jobs to the Palestinian economy. These jobs ensure that countless Palestinian families do not want for food and basic shelter. In this way, USAID's school construction programs respond to both short- and long-term needs of Palestinian communities.

Accomplishments 

The following chart sets forth some of the specific accomplishments of USAID's Community Services Program in the field of basic education between 1999 and 2003. Accomplishments include more than 1,100 educational rooms, kindergartens, safe playgrounds, hygienically sound sanitary facilities, teacher training, and computers and Internet connections.

Information Technology in Schools

A number of USAID's school construction projects include computer labs. One of the Community Services Programs partners, however, works exclusively in the area of information technology (IT). The International Youth Federation (IYF) of Baltimore, Md., cooperated with the Palestinian Welfare Association to implement an IT for Youth program in rural areas between Nablus and Jenin, one of the most remote places in the West Bank. The program targeted 7,000 students, 300 parents and 75 teachers.

The IT for Youth Program's major accomplishments since 2000 include construction and renovation of 13 computer labs, installation of 21 computers in each school, development of an IT curriculum (FutureKids Program), training of IT teachers and non-IT teachers, and establishment of a regional IT Center in Silet Al Daher Village in Jenin Governorate.

In July 2004, the IT for Youth Program received the "2004 Dubai International Award for Best Practices to Improve the Living Environment" from the UN Habitat and Dubai Municipality.

Geographic Spread

USAID's work in education has been spread geographically throughout the West Bank and Gaza, as the following chart demonstrates. The educational investment in the Hebron Governorate has so far exceeded $7 million, and more than $5 million in Jenin Governorate. In Salfeet, the funds provided approach $3 million while in Bethlehem and Nablus, it is about $2 million each. For the Gaza Strip, the educational investment is approximately $8 million.

Success Stories

Completed in 2003, Al-Mughraga Preschool has four classrooms, an administrative room and rest rooms. Previously there were no preschools in Al Mughraga. The preschool accommodates 120 children. Construction of the preschool generated approximately 1,840 person days of labor for the local community. The project was managed by ANERA, funded by USAID and implemented by the Village Council of Al-Mughraga. The president of the village council, Nabil Abu Kmail, stated:

"The project is the first of its kind in the village and will give Al-Mughraga children the chance to get a preschool education. Before the project was completed, the children had to travel a long distance by foot to the neighboring communities since their families were too poor to pay for any kind of transportation. This fact forced most of the families to keep their children home, and affected their performance when they enrolled in the elementary school."

Let Us Build Classrooms Together

Students from Kaffer Eddik Village, Salfeet, West Bank:

Amir Harb (11 years old): "Thank you for the classrooms and for paving our playground. Now, we do not have to cross long distances in order to go to another school in the next village because we can go to the fifth grade in our school. Please build us more classrooms so that we do not have to leave our school next year. We do not want to travel long distances especially in the cold winter weather and the hot summer season. We also want lavatories, a lab, a library and computers. I wish you luck in all the good work you do and I hope that your generosity never stops. Peace be with you and may God bless you."

Suha Bahjat (11 years old): "I thank those who built our beautiful school. In the past we did not have classes for the fifth grade, now we do. I hope they build us more classrooms so that we do not transfer to any other school. Today, we play freely in our playground, while in the past we couldn't because the playground was not paved. I thank those who paved our playground."