UNMIK/PR/217
Pristina—Bosniak textbooks have arrived in Pristina from Sarajevo, after long negotiations between Sarajevo and UNICEF Pristina, a member of the Textbook Consortium of Donors. The Consortium was formed last fall to provide textbooks to primary and secondary school children in Kosovo.
Last week, the Swiss Federal Representative handed over the first shipment of Bosniak textbooks to UNMIK Co-Head of Education and Science, Steffie Schnoor.
Libri Shkollor will distribute the entire consignment of textbooks to schools within the next ten days.
The Bosniak community, represented by SDA president Dr. Numan Balic, expressed gratitude to the Consortium on behalf of Bosniak teachers, students and parents.
The Consortium is tasked with ensuring the maintenance of the books from year to year. The students will not be charged for the books, but directors of schools and teachers are urged to maintain them in good condition so they can be passed on to students in following years.
Donor contributions for the book project have come from the Austrian Government, the Canadian Government (CIDA), the Danish Government (DANIDA), the Department for International Development (DFID/UK), the Kosova Foundation for an Open Society (KFOS), Platforma por Kosova (Barcelona), The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), UNICEF, and the U.S. State Department Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (US BPRM),
Both Dr Balic and UNMIK (Education) expressed their appreciation to UNICEF, Sarajevo and Pristina, as well as the Office of the High Representative, Sarajevo, for the roles they played in printing and delivering the Bosniak textbooks to Kosovo.