UNESCO and Saudi Committee conclude agreement in support of education for Palestinian university students – UNESCO press release

The Saudi Committee grants USD 2.9 million to education in Palestine

On 25 March 2013, the Saudi Committee for the Relief of Palestinian People and UNESCO concluded an agreement under which USD 2.9 million will support the right to education of Palestinian university students, particularly those from the most disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds and living in marginalized areas. The project seeks to provide needy university students with access to essential course materials and equipment such as key course texts, reference books, and computer and internet facilities. In partnership with the Health, Development, Information and Policy Institute (HDIP), a Palestinian NGO, the project will establish or support libraries that contain vital course materials for students in 12 districts in the West Bank and Gaza Strip: Tulkarem, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Nablus, Qalqiliya, Jerusalem, Jericho, Salfit, Gaza, Khan Younis.

In a message for the occasion, the Assistant Director-General for Strategic Planning, Hans d’Orville, praised Saudi Arabia’s generosity and strong commitment to UNESCO’s activities, and expressed his thanks, on behalf of the Director-General, Irina Bokova, to His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Minister of Interior and Director-General of the Saudi Committee, for his continuous and generous support to UNESCO’s activities in favour of education in Palestine.

His Excellency Ziad Aldrees, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to UNESCO, expressed his thanks to the Director-General Irina Bokova for her continuous support for projects with Saudi Arabia and stressed that Saudi Arabia is proud to sign this agreement to support needy Palestinians.

The cooperation between UNESCO and the Saudi Committee for the Relief of Palestinian People (an entity under the Saudi Ministry of Interior) started in 2005 when His Royal Highness Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, provided a contribution of USD 15 million to support higher education in Palestine. It was the beginning of a fruitful cooperation with UNESCO, which has subsequently  expanded over the years, ensuring the very positive impact of UNESCO’s efforts to assist Palestinian students and education institutions. In total, since 2005, the Saudi Committee would have provided a contribution of around USD 19 million including this new agreement.