RAMALLAH, Wednesday, July 10, 2019 (WAFA) – Anera (American Near East Refugee Aid), a leading development organization helping families in the Middle East since 1968, recently completed construction of a preschool in the West Bank village of Nilin, near Ramallah, the latest contribution in Anera’s campaign to dramatically expand preschool education for Palestinian children, according to a press release. The preschool, which will open its doors to children on September 1, was built with support from the Stengel family, it said.

The deputy minister of education, the mayor of Nilin, and the village council joined on Thursday Anera staff and members of the Stengel family in celebrating the opening of school.

“The Nilin preschool project is a wonderful example of cooperative development: the local community contributed the land; the Ministry of Education will staff and supervise the teachers, and Anera built the center and will train the teachers. We are particularly grateful to the Stengel family for their generosity,” Anera’s education program manager, Suleiman Mleahat, said.

Although USAID cuts have significantly impacted Anera, the organization continues many programs with the support of private and institutional donors, including building infrastructure like preschools. In April, Anera inaugurated a school in Qibya, and plans to complete five more preschools by the end of August, said the press release. In addition to building the schools, Anera conducts trainings for the teachers and works with parents to ensure that the preschools meet international standards for excellence.

Currently, most Palestinian children do not go to preschool due to a lack of facilities. Many of the preschools that do exist are in makeshift spaces. In 2010 there were only four government preschools in the West Bank. The schools Anera is building will more than double the number of public preschools.

The Ministry of Education will staff and maintain the schools. With these preschools, Anera hopes to establish a successful model that will be scaled-up across Palestine.

Anera is the leading organization working to advance early childhood development in Palestine. Anera’s 50-in-5 campaign – 50 new kindergartens in five years – builds new schools in impoverished and remote communities to create environments where children are well prepared to succeed.

M.K.