University College London launches partnership with three non-profit Gaza universities

University College London (UCL) has set out an agreement to partner with three non-profit universities in Gaza.

The memoranda of understandings (MOUs) are intended to support academic collaboration, research partnerships and teaching in education and the social sciences between UCL’s Institute of Education (IOE) and universities in Gaza. According to UCL, the agreements are also aimed at supporting efforts to sustain and rebuild higher education in Gaza.

Professor Li Wei, Director and Dean of the IOE, said: “I am pleased that the IOE is able to play an important role in supporting the rebuilding of higher education in Gaza.”

Dr Abdrabou Alanzi, Head of the Political Science Department at Al Azhar University, described the agreements as “much more than cooperation agreements.”

“They represent a model of responsible academic engagement in times of crisis and a profound expression of solidarity with Gaza’s universities,” he said.

“At a moment when higher education institutions in Gaza have endured unprecedented devastation, this partnership provides hope, advances academic recovery, and reaffirms that education and knowledge remain essential foundations for resilience and rebuilding.”

UCL said the agreements were developed in response to requests from academics in Gaza and are intended to provide a framework for longer-term collaboration between the institutions.

Dr Ahmed Kamal Junina, Head of the English Department at Al Aqsa University, said the agreements went beyond symbolic support.

“These MOUs matter because they recognise that supporting Gaza’s higher education sector requires more than expressions of concern,” he said.

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“For me and my fellow academics in Gaza, such partnerships offer vital spaces of continuity, collaboration, and dignity. They allow us to keep teaching, researching, and contributing to global knowledge even when the ordinary conditions of academic life have been severely disrupted.”

Professor Louise Archer, Director of UCL’s Centre for Sociology of Education and Equity, said the initiative aligned with the centre’s focus on educational access and social justice.

“Supporting social justice, access to education and critical agency are all core to the work of our centre,” she said. “We are delighted to support this valuable initiative and look forward to working and learning together with partners to build capacity and advance social science research on educational equity.”

Professor Elaine Chase, Dr Ian Warwick and Professor Jenny Parkes, co-directors of the UCL Centre for Education and International Development, said: “We see these MOUs as a valuable step towards further intellectual exchange and collaboration with colleagues from Gaza as part of broader joint efforts to rebuild the higher education sector in Gaza.”

Other IOE centres participating in the agreements include the Centre for Applied Linguistics, the International Centre for Intercultural Studies, Research in Media Arts and Play, the Social Science Research Unit, and the Thomas Coram Research Unit.

Professors Mette Louise Berg and Elena Fiddian-Qasmiyeh, academic co-chairs of UCL’s University of Sanctuary Working Group, welcomed the agreements.

“We are delighted that IOE has signed Memoranda of Understanding with three Gazan universities to foster academic collaboration and solidarity with our colleagues and students in Gaza,” they said.

“This historic partnership gives concrete expression to IOE’s and UCL’s commitment to change the world for the better, and upholds the values underpinning our aspiration for University of Sanctuary status.”

Featured image via Unsplash