From right: Mohammad Abdel Aal (UNRWA), Atallah Kuttab (WA), Ahmad Alhatti (Cayan), Roger Davies (UNRWA) and Faisal Alami (WA)

The Welfare Association signed in Beirut on 17 November 2009, a memorandum of understanding with Cayan company for Investment and Real Estate Development and UNRWA, by which Cayan company donates 1.6 million USD for the reconstruction of a school in Nahr el Bared camp. Welfare Association will be managing the funds of the project, while UNRWA will provide the land for the implementation of the project by Cayan company.

The agreement was signed by Dr. Atallah Kuttab, the Director General of the Welfare Association, Mr Ahmad Alhatti, Chairrman of the Cayan company and Mr. Roger Davies, Deputy Director of UNRWA Lebanon, in the presence of Mr. Faisal Alami the vice-chairman of the board of trustees of the Welfare Association and a number of officials from both signing parties.

On this occasion, Dr. Kuttab said “this project reflects the commitment of the Welfare Association to support education through its current programme strategy”. He added: ‘this agreement comes within the framework of a partnership with Cayan and UNRWA to construct a number of schools in Nahr el Bared camp. We are confident that this partnership will improve the conditions in refugee schools in the camps of Lebanon”.

Mr. Ahmad Alhatti said that investing in education is the most important thing that Cayan can do to develop and support Palestinian children.

 Mr. Roger Davies praised the efforts of the Welfare Association in supporting education, stressing on the “importance of its partnership with UNRWA”. He thanked Cayan company “for its generous donation that will contribute to improving education for Nahr el Bared camp children”.

UNRWA was established in 1950. Some 422,000 Palestine refugees registered with UNRWA in Lebanon benefit from its services in the field of education, health, infrastructure and social services. The Agency runs 75 schools in Lebanon with 33167 enrolled students for the school year 2009-2010. UNRWA is endeavoring to turn all its schools into single-shift schools, in view of the negative impact of double-shift system on the whole educational process. The only remaining double-shift schools are in Saida town and the North due to Nahr el Bared crisis.

Cayan company for investment and real estate development is pioneer in the field of real estate development in the region. It runs commercial projects of over 2 billion USD, in the United Arab Emirates, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The Welfare Association is a private non-profit making development association that was founded in Geneva in 1983 by Palestinian, and Arab intellectuals and businessmen with the aim of providing developmental and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians. It operates in the fields of education, culture, arts, community and economic development and health. It implemented more than 4000 projects and relief and development programmes, worth 300 million USD over more than 25 years