French President Emmanuel Macron has announced to increase the funding to the Christian schools in the Middle East. The president has further pledged to protect the heritage sites.
France would witness the elections in just three months, and till now, Macron’s gesture to defend education in the conflict zones has not been emphasized by the political rivals on the right, working towards the notion to protect the Western values.
On Tuesday, while interacting with 150 guests at the Elysée Palace, Macron stated, “It is France’s historic mission to support and safeguard Christianity, and it is secular engagement by the nation.”
He continued and said that this mission must never separate us but rather bring us together; it was a reaction to the importance of never abandoning the war for culture, education, and discussion in this volatile area.
Macron further stated that the French State would provide double the funds of the current funding for the Christian schools in the Middle East region. Now, the funding to be provided to the schools would be four million Euros.
Reportedly, the decision has been taken because the population of the Christians have been declined in the Middle East from 20 percent before World War 1 to four percent today. According to the Vatican, there are only 15 million Christians in the region.
For the first time the funding was made in January 2020, the provided funds have already helped around 174 schools; of these, 129 were situated in Lebanon, 16 in Egypt, 13 in Palestine, 7 in Israel and three in Jordon, in 2021.
President Macron further took an opportunity to give the Legion of Honor award to the director of the L’Oeuvre d’Orient since 2010, Monsignor Pascal Gollnisch.