RAMALLAH, Wednesday, October 19, 2022 (WAFA) – Palestine Tuesday signed a $6.3 million agreement with Norway and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in support of the education sector in Jerusalem.

The agreement was signed by Norway’s Representative in Palestine Torunn Viste and Special Representative of the Director-General of the United Nations Development Program Yvonne Healy under the auspices of Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh and in the attendance of Education Minister Marwan Awartani and Jerusalem Affairs Minister Fadi al-Hamdmi at the Prime Minister’s Office in Ramallah.

The agreement envisages the purchase and remodeling of a building to serve as a secondary school consisting of 12 classrooms for 350 girls. It also envisages the establishment of 15 science, technology, engineering and mathematics laboratories in addition to supporting extracurricular programs for 25 schools in the city.

In his speech during the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Shtayyeh considered that this timely grant is a “manifestation that Jerusalem is an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territory” and sends the clear message that Norway considers Jerusalem an integral part of the occupied territory in line with the United Nations resolutions and international law.

Commenting on the importance of the agreement, Norway’s Representative to Palestine Viste stated that the agreement aims to reinforce the resilience of Palestinians in East Jerusalem.

“Our engagement in this agreement emanates from our political commitment to the two-state solution and the state-building projects. It demonstrates our deep partnership with the Palestinian Authority,” she added.

Meanwhile, UNDP Director-General Yvonne said that UNDP signed the agreement out of its deep commitment to East Jerusalem while voicing profound concerns about  “the developments and also the general well-being of the population of East Jerusalem.”

K.F.