In the framework of internationalization, and under the patronage of H.E the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Dr. Mahmoud Abu Mouis, Al-Aqsa university participated in the virtual Erasmus+ Info. Day which was held on Wednesday, the 25th of November 2020 with the presence of the president of Al-Aqsa university Prof. Ayman Sobh and the EU Representative in Jerusalem Mr. Sven Kuhn von Burgsdorff, and Dr Nedal Jayousi the Representative of the Palestinian – European Cooperation Mission for Higher Education (Erasmus+) with more than 350 participants attending from the Palestinian including representatives of Ministries, Palestinian universities, distinctive scholars, representatives of embassies, NGOs and various beneficiaries.
The event introduced the European Union Program (Erasmus+) and illustrated its different components to urge universities to apply for the different grants of the next call of Erasmus+ program. It also presented the experiences of the Palestinian universities in the Erasmus+ program. In this regard, Al-Aqsa University had an active participation by presenting its experience in Erasmus+ projects, which was presented by Dr. Nabil Al-Aila, Dean of International Relations Affairs. Dr. El-Aila illustrated perfectly the impact of Eramus+ projects on the academic and the administrative staff as well as the students of Al-Aqsa University, which provided them with new experiences, knowledges and cultures.
The event included 5 sessions, where in the first session, Dr. Nedal Jayousi, the Director of the National Erasmus Office in Palestine, and the team introduced the agenda of the day. Dr. Jayousi and the Minister of Education and Higher Education Palestine represented by the Head of Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission Dr. Muammar Ishtewe awarded the new winners of the 2020 call for proposals from the Palestinian universities, and encouraged them to continue their successful engagement in the Erasmus+ programme for the benefit of the Palestinian students and academic institutions. In this respect, Al-Aqsa university was honored by the Director of the National Erasmus Office as it won a partnership with Al-Quds Open university in the CBHE project "Care".
The representative of the Erasmus + office in Palestine, Dr. Nidal Al-Jayousi, welcomed the attendees and presented the impact of the Erasmus+ program on higher education in Palestine and the most important achievements of higher education institutions.
After the opening, the event started with the speech by H.E. Dr. Mahmoud Abu Mouis the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, stressed the significant role that the EU has been playing through the support of Palestinian Higher Education Institutions; where the National Erasmus+ Office has been remarkably modernizing the system of Higher Education by creating new opportunities for the systems of Higher Education; and by enhancing the network between the universities; together with bridging gaps amongst the Palestinian, Arab and European Higher Education Institutions. Moreover, he shed the light on the distinctive role of Erasmus+ in upgrading the quality of Higher Education Institutions at all levels in Palestine.
