The foundation “Dirassa” is committed to support school education in Lebanon
"Dirassa" is Arabic and means "learning." The two founders, Hend Ammann and Elias Mouallem chose this programmatic title for their foundation to focus on schools in Lebanon. "We are particularly concerned about the future of the children," they say. Both are from Lebanon themselves and knew the country when it was more stable and prosperous. It was not only the explosion disaster in Beirut on August 4, 2020 that devastated large parts of Lebanon's capital; before that, a civil war (1975-1990), the Lebanon War (2006) and internal crises (since 2006) repeatedly brought the entire country to the brink of the abyss.
Belief in a bright future for the country
And yet, the founders believe in a promising future for the country. "Lebanon, this beautiful land of majestic cedars mentioned 64 times in the Bible, admittedly has no natural resources. It is its educational system, the vast majority of which consists of Christian congregational schools, some of which were founded in the 18th century, that has given Lebanon its cultural vibrancy and ensured its prosperity. Today's Lebanese diaspora, driven by crises and endless wars, bears witness everywhere to the quality and richness of this system," they write in the preamble to their statutes. Schools guarantee solid education and transmit the values of coexistence and interreligious dialogue. But today in Lebanon, the existence of these is threatened by the worst political and economic crisis in the country's history. Funding is uncertain for more than 80 percent of them. The two founders feel committed to the tradition and the educational system of the Congregational schools. They themselves have experienced "hope through education" through it. By founding Dirassa, the founders want to contribute to the survival of the education system in Lebanon.
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