USAID Announces Additional Funding for U.S. - Iraq University Partnerships
WASHINGTON, DC 20523
PRESS OFFICE
http://www.usaid.gov/
Press: (202) 712-4320
Public Information: (202) 712-4810
2003-096
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 2, 2003
Contact: USAID Press Office
WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced two additional grants to two university consortia, each lead by a U.S. institution of higher learning, to partner with and strengthen Iraqi universities. This brings to a total of five grants awarded by USAID for a funding level of $21,708,665. The Higher Education and Development (HEAD) program for Iraq is one of USAID's most significant engagements with the university community in recent years. The universities will support the work of the Coalitional Provisional Authority (CPA) to strengthen the capacity of Iraqi universities.
Breathing Life to the University of Mosul. The first of these grants, a $4,990,364 award, is to a consortium led by Jackson State University that will partner with the University of Mosul. The Mississippi Consortium for International Development (MCID), which includes Alcorn State University, Mississippi Valley State University and Tougaloo College, will provide assistance to the University of Mosul to assist the university in becoming a premier education and research institution of advanced learning in Iraq and the Middle East. This partnership will target its efforts on strengthening the University of Mosul's leadership role in a new Iraq by targeting public health and sanitation as the main sectors of support. The University of Mosul will develop new avenues to strengthen civil society organizations which will be important partners working in these sectors.
Rebuilding the Higher Education System. A second award in the amount of $4,988,569 is to the University of Oklahoma's College of Continuing Education to partner with the University of Al-Anbar, University of Basrah, and Salahaddin University. The Oklahoma Higher Education Partnership (OHEP), which includes Cameron University, Langston University and Oklahoma State University, will provide technical expertise to Iraq's universities and technical colleges. The program will help the universities provide access to research and academic databases, which were previously unavailable under the Hussein regime. The program will encourage Iraqi higher education administrators, faculty and students to engage in the revitalization of Iraq's higher education system. Some of the initiatives include the establishment and maintenance of the academic exchange program, promoting collaborative research and providing opportunities for faculty and students to interact.
In addition to this university initiative, the U.S. government is also supporting primary and secondary education efforts in Iraq, including an accelerated learning program, an extensive school rehabilitation program and the provision of essential school supplies and new textbooks. For more information about USAID's humanitarian relief and reconstruction efforts in Iraq, please visit www.usaid.gov/iraq/.
The U.S. Agency for International Development has provided economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide for more than 40 years.
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