British Council’s New Branch in Aden. [Archives:1997/40/Business & Economy]

Mr. Piers Pendred is the Assistant Director-General of the British Council in London. His work is concerned with English language teaching throughout the world. He said: “The Aden branch will not only be a center for the teaching of the English language, but also an information center on studying in Britain. “We believe, by cooperating in cultural and scientific fields, that people will understand each other better. It encourages an exchange of ideas between peoples, and gives rise to understanding which can lead to trade and friendly cooperation. So we work with local institutions and communities to ascertain which kind of cooperation is more appropriate in those environments.” “We are giving some advice to the Ministry of Education on curricula and tests through the Chief Inspector of Primary Education in Britain.” ” The British aid program is now under the department of international development in Britain which the British Council and the Foreign Office have worked closely with.”
Mr. Brendan McSharry, the director of the British council in Yemen said; “There are many scholars here who had studied in Britain and are contributing to the cultural and professional life in Yemen. It is very good to see them come together under the umbrella of the Yemeni-British Friendship Association. “It is a great privilege to be able to work in this country because we believe, in its small way, the British Council is part of establishing the future of deep and important relations between Yemen and our country. “During my two and a half years in Yemen, most of the foreign community see Yemen Times as a fair and independent newspaper. They find it a very useful source of information.” “Now the official English book for schools in Yemen is a British, Crescent series book which has been produced by the Oxford University Press. The British Council has been involved in giving advice in using this book at state schools in Yemen. “I know that the Ambassador is keen to give some support to the development of the new faculty of languages at Sana’a University”.
Mr. Abdullah Al-Dhuraibi, the Projects and Exchanges Manager, said; “Under the British Partnership Scheme (BPS), which supports projects up to a value of $65,000, support was provided for the University of Hadhramaut in the form of full equipment for its electronics engineering laboratory. Support was also provided for the new Center for British, American and Translation Studies at the University of Aden. The Yemen Ornithological Society has also received support to enable it conduct an education campaign in schools throughout Yemen. The newly opened College of Languages at Sana’a University received an audio-visual laboratory.” “The British Council provides fellowships for about 50 Yemenis to study in Britain per year. Some fellows study for masters degrees, while others follow short courses, varying from 3 months to a year.” “Last but not least, the British Council would like to thank the British Ambassador to Sana’a., Mr. Douglas Scrafton for his continuous help and support.” Epilogue: The Queen Victoria statue which once graced the Tawahi park in Aden, was removed to a museum after the independence of southern Yemen in 1967 and has now been placed in the new British Council gardens in Aden.
By Dr. Salah Haddash,
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