RIYADH, 14 August 2006 — In a move to increase cooperation in the education sector, Saudi Arabia and Britain have announced a strategic partnership to develop the Kingdom’s English language curriculum.
On behalf of the United Kingdom, the British Embassy, in association with the British Council, will work in partnership with the General Organization of Technical Education and Vocational Training (GOTEVOT).
“The purpose of the project is to develop the English language curriculum for all technical colleges in Saudi Arabia,” said Talal Safar, the British Council’s media officer.
This project is of great importance for the Kingdom, which has some 30 technical colleges in different cities and towns with the number expected to be 40 by the year 2010, according to a GOTEVOT report.
GOTEVOT estimates more than 75,000 students will be in the colleges by 2010; it is concerned about training and development of local manpower with special emphasis on English.
The two-year project, managed by the British Council on behalf of the British Embassy and Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO), will devise and deliver English language training to support the needs of the modern workplace in Saudi Arabia.
During the course of the meeting in 2005 between Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and Prime Minister Tony Blair, the two leaders agreed to support development of English language teaching in the Kingdom.
Two full-time British consultants have already been appointed to work closely with the English Language Committee at GOTEVOT led by Dr. Abdul Karim Al-Nujaidi on the Saudi side. Jon Gore, deputy director of British Council, is managing the project on the British side.
