In a move to strengthen bilateral ties and expand educational opportunities, Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates and the Turkish Maarif Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on education cooperation at the ministry’s headquarters in Damascus.
The memorandum was signed on behalf of Syria by Qutayba Qadish, director of the International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and on behalf of Turkey by Ankara’s ambassador to Damascus, Nuh Yılmaz.
Ammar al-Azmah, director of the Bilateral Cooperation Division within the ministry’s International Cooperation Department, said the agreement aims to organize the foundation’s work in Syria and launch its activities in coordination with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
Azmah explained that cooperation with the foundation will include establishing schools from kindergarten through secondary education, supporting higher education through scholarships, conducting scientific research and providing students with technical and vocational training to enhance their skills.
Turkey Expands Educational Role in Syria
Harun Akyılmaz, the Turkish Maarif Foundation’s representative in Syria, said the organization plans to begin its educational activities in Damascus before expanding to Aleppo and other Syrian cities. He noted that the foundation has operated internationally since 2016 and previously ran three schools in northern Syria before the fall of the Assad regime, where educational activities continued during the conflict.
The foundation currently operates educational institutions in nearly 70 countries. The Turkish Maarif Foundation is the only institution authorized by Turkey to provide educational services abroad. It serves as a platform for international educational cooperation and cultural exchange and is a nonprofit public institution authorized to manage schools ranging from preschool to higher education.
