Opening of Birzeit University Guest House

On 24 May 2012, BZU opened its new guest house, Hosh Al-E’tem,
in the town of Birzeit. Hosh Al-E’tem will host visiting professors and experts,
who support the educational process at BZU.

The opening ceremony was attended by
the Vice President for Administrative and Financial
Affairs, Dr. Adel Zagha​​; Director of the Advancement Office
at BZU, Manal Issa; Co-Director
of Riwaq, Fida Touma; Mayor of Birzeit, Dr.
Yousef Nasir;  the Minister of the Walloon
Government in Charge of Heritage, Carlo Di Antonio; and Belgian Consul General in Jerusalem,
Geert Cockx.

Dr. Zagha expressed his happiness
with this cooperation, stressing BZU’s concern with the
preservation of Palestinian cultural heritage by rehabilitating historic buildings that serve community needs.

Issa explained that Hosh
Al-E’tem consists
of a group of historic buildings that were constructed before
1948 and are owned by the Birzeit Municipality. These
buildings were renovated by Riwaq in coordination with the Municipality and with the support
of Wallonie Bruxelles International-Belgium and the Institut du Patrimoine Wallon- Belgium.

In terms of Riwaq’s role, Touma discussed
how Riwaq seeks to preserve this
significant heritage through rehabilitation
and by promoting a sense of
shared responsibility.

Dr. Nasir stated that the rehabilitation of this historic building
is part of the Municipality’s action plan
to boost the economic and cultural conditions of the town.

Consul Cockx
applauded the role of Birzeit University, Palestinian institutions and municipalities
in preserving Palestinian heritage. He also highlighted Belgian support for the preservation of Palestinian heritage.