Analysis of two decades of aid flows to higher education in Palestine: implications for rebuilding destroyed higher education in Gaza

Abstract This research critically analyses foreign aid flows to higher education in Palestine during 2002–2022, with the aim of elucidating historical trends, patterns and donor priorities. The study systematically examines the types and volumes of aid allocated to higher education by donors reporting official development assistance to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. By exploring these aid dynamics, the research provides important insights into the aid trends to higher education in Palestine in the past and investigates whether the destruction of higher education in Gaza during prior conflicts has resulted in a significant increase in aid directed towards the sector’s reconstruction and recovery. The findings indicate that in the past, donors have prioritised the provision of international scholarships for Palestinians to study abroad while neglecting local higher education in Palestine. Aid directed to local higher education has been uneven, fragmented and sporadic, undermining the efforts to strengthen and/or rebuild local institutions. Most notably, foreign aid has not played a significant role in either the development and expansion of higher education in Palestine or the rebuilding of the institutions after destruction in previous wars in Gaza. This research highlights a pattern of neglect and advocates for a reassessment of donor strategies, emphasising the need to support strengthening and rebuilding local higher education to facilitate the sector’s role in post-conflict socio-economic recovery.