Finland strengthens its support for education sector in the Palestinian Territories
Press release 76/2011
3 March.2011
Finland and the Palestinian National Authority have signed an agreement concerning Finnish support for an education sector programme. The purpose is to support arrangement of education and enhancement of the quality of teaching in the Palestinian Territories. The agreement will enter into force in the beginning of March.
Finland has been supporting the development of the education sector in the Palestinian Territories through a bilateral project for as long as since 1997 (Palestinian-Finnish Education Programme, PALFEP). In the PALFEP project, Finland has been promoting harmonisation of development aid targeted for the education sector, which in practice means harmonisation of the operating methods of donors. In addition, Finland has been involved in the development of a sector-wide programme for the education sector of the Palestinian National Authority.
“Good education is one of the basic prerequisites of sustainable development, and supporting education is a central part of Finnish development policy," Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen highlights.
Finland, Ireland, Norway and Germany are now the first to start providing assistance to the education sector of the Palestinian National Authority through a sector-wide programme. Instead of project-specific cooperation, the four donors involved target their assistance to supporting the five-year plan ‘Education Development Strategic Plan (EDSP) 2008-2012 - Towards Quality Education for Development’, published by the Palestinian National Authority in the summer of 2008, through a joint financing arrangement. Finland’s share of the financing is EUR 9 million in 2011-2013, and the total assistance of the co-financing partners amounts to approximately USD 100 million. The sector-wide programme, about to be launched, is first of its kind in the Palestinian territories.
In spite of difficult conditions, children participate extensively in basic education in the Palestinian territories, and the Palestinian National Authority also invests significant amounts of its own resources in education and training. In the future, the challenge is how to consistently improve the quality of education. Through the five-year plan, the Palestinian National Authority has made a strong commitment to improving the quality of education, including improved governance of education, and developing the infrastructure, curriculums, instructional technology, teacher training, and school health care.
The aim of Finnish development cooperation in the Palestinian territories is to support the Middle East peace process by developing institutions of the Palestinian National Authority and creating conditions for establishment and functioning of a state. The priorities of Finnish assistance are education and water sectors, and the development of civilian police. In addition, there are plans for supporting the land administration sector. Finland supports the Palestinian National Authority also by means of direct budget support mechanisms. In 2010, Finland’s total assistance via bi- and multilateral financing channels was approximately EUR 11.3 million.
Additional information: Inspector Susanna Rinta, tel. +358 9 1605 6223, +358 40 837 0917