On Sept. 3^rd, 2013, a workshop was conducted at An-Najah National University to introduce the Tempus-UNAM project, which is funded by the European Union. Several representatives from Palestinian universities participated in the workshop, including Prof. Maher Al-Natsheh, Acting President of An-Najah National University; Dr. Nedal Al-Jayousi, the Tempus Program Coordinator of the Institutions of Higher Education; Mr. Rashid Al-Kukhun, Finance Director; and Dr. Emad Breik, Tempus Program Coordinator at the University.

The workshop commenced with a welcoming speech by Prof. Maher Al-Natsheh, who spoke about the significance and benefits of the Tempus-UNAM project for all the Palestinian universities. He discussed the financial challenges that higher education institutions face in the Palestine and ways that universities can overcome these obstacles.

Dr. Nedal Al-Jayousi delivered a presentation about the Tempus project, emphasizing the importance of this project in higher education institutions in Palestine. He stated how the Tempus UNAM project can lend specific financial support to meet particular institutional demands. He mentioned how Tempus can assist in financing specific projects in the field of higher education, academic research and other topics.

Dr. Emad Breik also delivered a presentation about the project and discussed how the University has benefited from the project and the ways the project has been implemented at An-Najah. He also stated that this project is vital in enhancing the relationship between Palestinian higher education institutions and the local community. Dr. Breik highlighted that the focus of this project is to sustainably strengthen managerial, strategic, administrative and technical capacities in higher education institutions.

Finally, Mr. Rashid Al-Khukhun emphasized the financial aspects of the project, highlighting that the project focuses on promoting modernism, decentralization and financial independence in higher education institutions in Europe and the Middle East.

He mentioned that this project aims to develop financial transparencies in universities and create a platform for communication by establishing a regional network, identified by the administrative directors of universities to exchange expertise and good financial practices in financial administration.  In this way, administrative capacities can be enhanced sustainably.

Mr. Al-Khukhun also presented the results of a comparative analysis of financial management practices in HEIs in Europe and the Middle East; this study was conducted by the University of Applied Science in Austria.  The study focused on several subjects in the fields of structures, regulations (administrative, organizational and financial), computerized administrative systems and cooperation with the financial sector. 

Participants discussed this study during the workshop.  They also discussed financial and administrative issues for universities – namely, how universities in the Arab world can benefit from the European experience, and how they can generate support for them. The workshop also dealt with the administrative structures of financial departments and how censorship affects the quality of higher education.

The Tempus-UNAM project is a strategic project. It aims to build a union between Arab and European universities and to initiate strong and sustainable cooperation between them.