WASHINGTON: US Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced up to $90 million in funding over five years for education programmes in Lebanon and Jordan.
The funding is in support of the No Lost Generation Initiative.
It will strengthen school systems, curriculum and social cohesion for Lebanese and Jordanian communities, and the Syrian refugees they are hosting.
USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah said, "While the devastating crisis in Syria has robbed children of their homes and in some cases their families it doesn't also have to rob them of their future. That is why we have joined the initiative, which brings together an international coalition committed to raising awareness about the plight of children, protecting them from violence, and getting them back into schools."
Shah spoke at the No Lost Generation Initiative event on the side-lines of the UN General Assembly meetings.
In Lebanon, USAID plans $45 million in education funding over the next four years, with $9.5 million provided this year.
The project will improve reading outcomes for primary-level public school students, strengthen Lebanese institutions to better direct and monitor education, and expand access to safe education for all children, including Syrian refugees.
In Jordan, USAID plans up to $45 million in funding over the next five years, awarding nearly $9 million this year for an education programme to improve teaching and learning processes, especially in reading and math, including in communities hosting Syrian refugees.
USAID's UK counterpart Department For International Development (DFID) is providing additional funding to this programme.
The United States is working closely with the Ministries of Education in Lebanon and Jordan, in addition to international organizations, to address the needs of host communities and refugee children, particularly access to quality education.
In both countries, USAID supports longer-term development objectives, such as improving early grade reading outcomes in primary schools, and better preparing and equipping teachers to address the needs of all students, including Syrian refugees.
The US Government has provided $2.9 billion in humanitarian assistance since the start of the Syrian conflict that includes protective family care and reunification, psychosocial support and other critical needs of children inside Syria and in neighbouring countries. (QNA)
