Gaza Strip and West Bank - Summary

Palestinians have traditionally had a reputation for maintaining a high-quality educational system. According to the PNA, the system deteriorated significantly after 1967 for a number of reasons, including frequent school closures, curfews, and other restrictions resulting from the Intifada (civil uprising); a lack of financial resources for the maintenance and construction of school buildings; and insufficient preservice and in-service training for teachers. Spokespersons for the PNA's Ministry of Education have stated that they hope to restore the educational system to at least its previous level as quickly as available funding permits. The pace of such restoration is likely to be affected both by their ability to get grant funding from international governmental and private entities (e.g., NGOs) and by the Arab-Israeli peace process.