Jeddah, KSA, 24.06.2014 – A seminar on bilingual education held on the sidelines of the 39th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) in Jeddah, stressed the importance of mastering languages to facilitate employment especially in rural communities in various member countries of the IDB.

Chairing the seminar, IDB Vice President (Operations) Mr. Birama Sidibe, emphasized the importance given to bilingual education by the IDB, particularly in the African continent, in the wake of its social acknowledgement as well as its status in Islam. “Providing basic and comprehensive quality education is amongst the top development priorities of the IDB focusing mainly on the least developed member countries and in Muslim communities elsewhere in the world,” Mr. Sidibe added. He further
stated that IDB’s efforts help to fill a gap in missed opportunities by providing technical education and vocational training.

Dr. Aesha Bah Diallo, former minister of pre-higher education and professional education in the Republic of Guinea elaborated on the status of education in Africa and the challenges ahead.

Professor Mamadou Ndoye, former minister of education of the Republic of Senegal, also spoke on the achievements and experiences in the field of education in Africa.

The participants agreed on a bilingual education agenda for 2015 and beyond encouraging the IDB to further enhance its efforts to ensure that qualitative education is enjoyed by male and female students while taking into account the requirements in a fast changing world.

The seminar also stressed the need for devising enhanced curriculum development and adoption of new practices to ensure the success of bilingual education and allocating further financial resources for bilingual education program in Africa.