The dialogue on education gathered key stakeholders to foster effective collaboration with the MEHE and discuss education in the 21st century

Beirut, December 15th 2008: Working closely with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, the Partnership for Lebanon launched a series of workshops titled: Dialogue on education. Gathering all stakeholders, practitioners and the key players in the sector, seven sessions will be held with the objective of creating a strategic plan for the integration of ICT in the schools ; a core component for 21st century education system. The series of workshops tackles the main challenges surfacing with the integration of ICT in schools education and invite the participant’s recommendations to address them effectively

The first session “Education in the 21st Century” was launched by H.E Bahia Hariri and headed by the Ministry’s General Director, Mr. Fadi Yarak. Tae Yoo (Senior Vice-President of Corporate Affairs at Cisco), Lila Ibrahim (General Manager of Intel’s Emerging Markets Group) and Morgan Holt (Middle East and Africa Education Director at Microsoft) introduced and gave an overview on the Education in the 21 Century Although the vision is global, the path to 21st century requires a local journey; Leila Mleiha Fayad (President of the educational center of research and development), Nada Mneimneh (Project manager of the Education Development) and other prominent personalities from the educational sector discussed Lebanon status in the 21st Education

The Minister of Education and Higher Education, H.E. Bahia Hariri, stressed on the importance of education; Since her appointment at the Ministry and knowing that her mission will only last for a year, a motto has been declared: “One year of success...an age of development”. The responsibilities were set, keeping in mind that the practicality of the projects, on which the Partnership for Lebanon has been focused, can revive and develop the education strategy in Lebanon with one main goal: the implementation of technology and ICT in the education process.

This initiative comes inline with the Partnership’s focus on expanding the reach of education and workforce training, creating jobs, supporting the government in supporting in building a platform for educational transformation, building out the country's technology infrastructure, and connecting communities and government.

During the opening ceremony, Tae Yoo, Senior Vice-President of Corporate Affairs at Cisco, stated: “The future growth and stability of our global economy depends on the ability of education systems around the world to prepare students for career opportunities and help them attain higher levels of achievement. The complexity of this challenge calls for a bold and timely response, a global solution that allows poorer countries to leapfrog costly stages in the development and expansion of their educations systems, while enabling schools around the world to incorporate 21st century skills into demanding curricula utilizing technology as an enabler"

Lila Ibrahim, General Manager of Intel’s Emerging Markets Group added: “For 40 years, Intel has been actively involved in education as the foundation for a country’s innovation, growth, and leadership; we are pleased to work with the forward-thinking Ministry of Education to extend our efforts in Lebanon. Together, we hope to advance the opportunities for Lebanese students through enhanced student curricula, integration of the latest classroom technologies, and providing teachers with world-class tools.”

Last but not least, Megan Holt Middle East and Africa Education Director at Microsoft, elaborated: “Microsoft is very proud to be part in the Partnership for Lebanon, and is committed to its various programs in the country, to make a positive impact on the lives of people in Lebanon and support the transformation of education, leading to sustained social and economic development in the country. This Partnership is expected to elevate the impact Microsoft and the other partners are expected to achieve individually, our focus as Microsoft is to be one of the main drivers in this Partnership investing in youth and building solid and sustained investments in education reform in the country building on Lebanon’s core skills in creativity and innovation in addition to being a tri lingual country”.

Six other sessions will follow expanding the dialogue until April 2009 and tackling various topics: “ICT in education: a management perspective”, “School Internal Effectiveness”, “ICT Infrastructure”, “e curriculum”, “Capacity Building” and “Budget & Funding”. For more information, please visit the Partnership for Lebanon website: www.partnershipforlebanon.org.

More about the Partnership for Lebanon: The Partnership for Lebanon is led by five U.S. companies: Cisco, GHAFARI, Intel, Microsoft and Occidental Petroleum, working through public private partnerships and with the Lebanese people since September 2006. The PFL focuses on five areas critical to creating sustainable social and economic growth in the region including: information communication technology (ICT) infrastructure; job creation/private sector revival; connected communities; workforce training; and crisis relief and response.