Mujawar: Education is a key to development [Archives:2007/1044/Local News]

SANA'A, April 22 ) Addressing participants at the Association of Arab Universities, which concluded its 40th meeting Monday in Sana'a, Yemeni Prime Minister Ali Mujawar stated that, “Education is the only key that brings about economic and social development and through it, we can attain a high level of social development.”

Approximately 150 participants from Arab universities and both regional and international organizations attended the two-day meeting organized by the private University of Science and Technology in Sana'a.

Inaugurating the meeting, the prime minister said his government was interested in the meeting, as well as the scientific meetings that will follow.

Mujawar, who was appointed prime minister in late March, confirmed that his government has decided to renovate several colleges to meet scientific and educational requirements, indicating that, “The education budget, in all its varying levels, has risen more than 20 percent.”

With more than 15 universities in Yemen teaching approximately 200,000 students, in addition to more than six million students attending schools, Mujawar said such numbers necessitate the government to encourage establishing technical and vocational education institutions “that will meet the requirements of the labor market.

“Higher education institutions must focus more and more on specialization in extensive development fields,” he added.

For his part, meeting Chairman and Algeria University President Taher Al-Najjar briefed participants on the association's achievements during the past 10 years regarding incorporating reforms and modern scientific means into higher education.

Participants discussed several reports, including minutes from last year's 39th meeting in Algeria, in addition to the extent that meeting's recommendations were implemented.

The Association of Arab Universities is an independent body based in Amman, Jordan. It was approved by the Arab League in 1964 with the aim of tackling higher education problems in the Arab world. The association's General Secretariat was established a year later and its first meeting was held in 1969 in Egypt, with the participation of 23 Arab universities.
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