ee ee
DOUGLAS COLLEGE

ARCHIVES

 

The Hariri Foundation likes what Canada can
offer

WAR AGAINST WAR THROUGH EDUCATION

by Ayman Al-Yassini, Director of Public Affairs
at CBIE,

The Canadian Bureau for International Education
(C B1E) has concluded recently an agreement
with the Hariri Foundation of Lebanon to admin-
ister the Foundation's scholarship program in
Canada.

The Hariti Foundation was established in 1984 to
embrace the philanthropic activities of Rafiq
Hariri, a Saudi businessman of Lebanese origin.
To implement its humanitarian, educational and
cultural activities, the foundation has entered
into a number of agreements with French,
British and American education agencies as well
as with the American University of Beirut and
other academic institutions in Lebanon. The
foundation's agreement with CBIE is the first
of its kind in Canada.

Rafiq Hariri, son of a poor farmer from Sidon,

Lebanon, went to Saudi Arabia as a teacher in

1965 but eventually started a construction

company which became very successful. Twenty

years later, he has become one of the kingdom's
_ wealthiest businessmen.

Hariri, 42 years old, played the role of Saudi
formal mediator and peacemaker in the Lebanese
crisis. Among his philanthropic activities, he
poured millions of dollars into rebuilding and
restoring war-shattered Beirut, and built an
entire hospital complex near Sidon.

In 1983, he was honoured in Washington by the
Save the Children Organization for his relief
efforts in Lebanon, including personally matching
$500,000 in donations to the group to help needy
Lebanese children.

Possession of wealth imparts a "duty" according
to Hariri. "You are part of the society," he says,
"you cannot just sit around and watch and enjoy
your money without participating in that society.

 

Our religion is based on that."

The Hariri Foundation is non-profit, non-sectarian

and non-partisan, open to all needy Lebanese men

and women. Most important to the foundation is
the encouragement of study and education for
Lebanon's young people to rebuild the country and
to increase cultural interaction between Lebanese
students and others.

The Foundation is committed to providing higher
education opportunities and specialization to
lebanese students of low income background.
Students are provided with loans to pursue their
studies and upon graduation, pay back the loans.

In general terms, the foundation seeks to achieve:

- cultural development and dissemination of
knowledge in Lebanon.

- social development and the improvement of
individual and social standards.

- improvement of the material wellbeing of all
Lebanese communities.

The Foundation also aims to broaden employment
opportunities for as many talented Lebanese
students as possible through its scholarship pro-
gram. This is done through research into employ-
ment demands in Lebanon and other Arab countries,
and matching these factors with the student's
scholastic ability, financial need and desire to
specialize in a certain field.

As seen by the Foundation, education is the
vehicle for the reconstruction of Lebanon.
Consequently, more than 7,000 students have
been sponsored to study abroad.

Special attention is given to the preparatory
stage of students prior to their enrollment abroad.
This preparation includes foreign languages
training and career guidance.

The work of Hariri and his foundaion is a
"declaration of war against war, poverty and
ignorance." the new world which the foundation
is attempting to build is based on knowledge and
tolerance. cont. on next page