Informal Education in East Jerusalem – A Study of Needs and Recommendations

Government Decision 3790 for “Reduction of Socio-Economic Gaps and Economic Development in East Jerusalem,” from May 13, 2018, provides for socio-economic investment in East Jerusalem with a budget of approximately 2.1 billion NIS over the course of five years. The Decision includes six main areas of activity – primary, secondary and higher education; economy and employment; transportation; improvement of services and quality of life for residents (infrastructure for leisure activities and water and sewage infrastructure); health; and land registration (Ir Amim 2019, Second Quarter). The amount allocated for informal education in the Government Decision is approximately 206 million NIS over the course of the five-year plan, and it constitutes almost one-half of the overall sum designated for investment in the area of education in the Government Decision. The investment in the informal education field is divided among diverse targets – enrichment programs in the schools both during the course of the school day and afterschool hours, youth organizations, learning centers, lessons, etc.

This report was written in the wake of a study that focused on the programs and budgetary allocations transferred for purposes of informal education in East Jerusalem pursuant to the education chapter of Decision 3790, its central objective to examine the needs of the East Jerusalem population in the area of informal education, and whether they are being addressed as part of the implementation of the Government Decision.