Applied Science University Participated in the 47th Conference of the Association of Arab Universities (AARU) (Palestine Session), the conference was held under the patronage of His Majesty Abdullah II Bin Al Hussein the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Amman. The conferencewas organized by the “Middle East University” in cooperation with the Association; it is considered the annual academic Arab forum at the level of chancellors, with the participation of more than (250) Arab chancellors, in addition to the representatives of the Arab, regional, and international organizations.

During the conference, the chancellors of Arab universities discussed the cooperation and coordination among Arab universities on the one hand, and between the Association and Arab universities, institutions and International Academic organizations on the other hand. They also discussed the ways of activating the role of Arab universities in sustainable development on the exchange of cultures and experiences of Arab Universities. Furthermore, The General Assembly meeting tackled a number of key issues including addressing the importance of continuously enhancing quality higher education in particular with the emergence of new means of learning such as blended and e-learning; improving research undertaking and enforcing Arabic Language.

The participants at the end of the “47th General Conference of the Arab Universities Association” (Palestine Session), agreed on launching a strategic plan for the coming years to serve as a road map for the Association’s actions on quality assurance of education at all levels.

The participants discussed the agenda of the conference which was prepared by the Secretariat of the association; the agenda included the reports of General Secretariat, managers and scientific societies, moreover, the participants identified and discussed the Arab universities which wish to join the association after reviewing the reports of Membership Examination Committees and satisfying all membership conditions. Also, the participants discussed the report of the General Secretariat about the role of the scientific associations and periodicals.

It is worth mentioning that all these conferences are held at the level of chancellors, in addition to academic projects carried out by the Association in partnership with many international organizations such as the EU and the British Council;  the cooperation between the Association on one hand and the University of Cardiff Metro Bulletin, Leadership Foundation for Higher Education in the United Kingdom and the British Council on the other hand leads to Inaugurate ARELEN “Arab European Leadership Network in Higher Education.”

In this regard, Dr. Waheeb Al-Khaja the President of Applied Science University has stated that these meetings are important and vital because it achieve the goals of the Association as consolidating the cooperation among the Arab universities and coordinating the efforts of the universities with each other and with international and regional universities and institutions in many related fields as learning techniques and modern patterns.

Dr. Al-Khaja explained that the university believes in the importance of partnership with the members of Association of Arab Universities and the cooperation with universities and educational institutions that have internationally and regionally a scientific reputation.

Professor “Sultan Abu-Orabi”, Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities (AARU), confirmed the role of the Association in the development of higher education in the Arab world, and its constant work to coordinate the efforts that increase the international- Arab interaction and cooperation, and the joint Arab action, he added that scientific research is the only way to build the self-capacity of the nations, their development, and the promotion of their international status. He said that the increase of spending on scientific research and paying attention to competencies and Arab intellect, which exist in many foreign countries, is considered a top priority that decision makers should support and make a success.

Abu-Orabi pointed out the challenges that higher education in the Arab world encounters, including weakness of the productivity of scientific research, shortage of funding, shortage of researchers and migration of Arab brains.

The chancellors of Arab universities who participated in this conference renewed confidence in Professor “Sultan Abu-Orabi”, Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities for the next three years as per the internal system of the Association.