The Vice President of Yarmouk University for Planning, Development Affairs, Scientific Research, and Quality Affairs, Professor Samer Samarah, met with a delegation that included members of the universities participating in the REACH Project, which is concerned with addressing learning difficulties for children, especially those with disabilities, among Syrian refugees, considering that the Project is implemented by the University represented by the Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration Studies Center, the Canadian Simon Fraser University, and Kazakh University of Atyrau.
Samarah stressed that Yarmouk, based on its societal responsibility towards refugees, implemented, through the Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration Studies Center, many studies that address refugee issues including various educational, health, and social aspects, which formed a resource for researchers and decision-makers in the field of refugee affairs. The University, he explained, in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, provides the opportunity for refugees to study in its various majors at a reduced cost. He then praised the effective cooperation between the Refugee Center, Simon Fraser University of Canada, and the University of Atyrau of Kazakhstan represented by implementing the REACH project in its various stages, which has a positive impact in developing the skills of refugee children who suffer from learning difficulties and those with disabilities, thus enabling them to engage in their communities and carry out their tasks properly.
In return, the members of the delegation praised the important and pivotal role played by the Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration Studies Center in implementing the stages of the REACH Project to achieve the desired results and develop the capabilities of refugee children who suffer from learning difficulties and make them able to face educational challenges at various stages. They also stressed their universities' keenness to develop ways of cooperation with Yarmouk University in various fields due to Yarmouk’s excellence and proven competence in the research and academic fields.
During their visit to the University, the members of the delegation met with the staff of the Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration Studies Center and the director of the first phase of the project, Dr. Reem Al-Kharouf, where the delegation listened to a detailed explanation from the director of the center, Dr. Ruba Al-Akash, about the Center and its role in implementing the project, and its keenness to share its expertise with partner universities in the REACH Project.
