In support of the State of Palestine’s Ministry of Education, the Country Director of Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in Palestine, Youseung Shin, and the Special Representative of the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in the State of Palestine, Lucia Elmi, signed an agreement for UNICEF to implement the project, “Project for Improving Education Quality in The West Bank in The State of Palestine”.

A press release by KOICA office said the $6,950,000 project will assist the Ministry of Education to improve education quality for girls and boys in pre-primary and basic education in the most vulnerable communities of the West Bank, directly reaching 50,000 students (half of whom are girls), 2,075 school educational staff, and 2,500 teachers. Over 600 schools in the West Bank will receive assistance; 100 schools will benefit from water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, and 500 schools from education services.

During the project, which will continue until 2025, UNICEF, on behalf of KOICA, will support the Ministry of Education to ensure an improved learning environment for pre-primary and basic school aged girls and boys, said the press release. The project will also increase awareness and capacity among relevant education staff on Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) approaches to teaching and learning, provide teachers, students, parents, and community members with support to address violence against children in school, and strengthen monitoring and evaluation to improve quality education.

The project, it added, is aligned with the priorities of the Government’s National Policy Agenda for the State of Palestine and the priorities of the Ministry of Education to provide quality education for all and quality health care for all. The project will improve the quality and relevance of education, which enhances the acquisition of basic life skills and citizenship education (LSCE), and enhances Government’s capacity and systems to provide quality learning opportunities in an inclusive and safe environment. The project will also enhance access to the quality of services and the school environment by improving the children’s access to safe water and safe sanitation.

KOICA has supported the Education sector since 2009, resulting in the establishment of two vocational training Schools: one in Jenin (2009, $2.3 million) and another in Kufr Nimeh, near Ramallah, (2014, $3.7 million). In addition, KOICA renovated computer labs for schools in the West Bank and Gaza (2012, $1 million). Furthermore, KOICA will be establishing a new Vocational School in Yatta, near Hebron, starting from 2022, in the amount of $6 million.

KOICA has supported Palestine since 1994 and has provided approximately $73 million of assistance. KOICA’s programs focus on quality education for youth, creating decent job opportunities, government capacity building for quality public services, and health care.

UNICEF in the State of Palestine (UNICEF SoP) works to uphold the rights of children to access services and protection, from early childhood through adolescence as per the Convention of the Rights of the Child ratified by the State of Palestine on 2 April 2014.