Thneibat urges UNESCO to support vocational, teacher training in Jordan

AMMAN — The total contributions of international organisations and donors do not exceed 38 per cent of Syrian refugees’ educational costs, Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Mohammad Thneibat said Tuesday. 

At a meeting with UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova held at the organisation’s headquarters in Paris, Thneibat noted more than 200,000 non-Jordanian students receive education at Jordan’s public schools without having to pay any additional costs, despite the Kingdom’s scarce resources, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The minister called on UNESCO to support Jordan in the fields of vocational education and teacher training, with Bokova expressing readiness to help the Kingdom.

Thneibat also voiced his appreciation for UNESCO’s efforts in preserving Islamic and Christian heritage in Jerusalem and its role in this regard.

Bokova stressed UNESCO’s support for Jordan’s efforts in hosting and educating Syrian refugees, adding that the agency is fully aware of the pressure and challenges the Syrian crisis placed on the Kingdom’s infrastructure and limited resources, according to Petra. 

Thneibat and Bokova also agreed to assign one of the UNESCO director general’s assistants to follow up on all the issues covered during the meeting, especially those related to vocational education, teacher training and the impact of Syrian refugees on the education sector.

Jordan’s Ambassador to France Makram Qaisi, who attended the meeting, said the embassy will also follow up on the outcomes of the talks in cooperation with the Education Ministry, praising UNESCO’s support for the educational, cultural and scientific fields, Petra added.