Technical work and infrastructure preparation have started in the north for the potential reopening of the bicommunal educational program Imagine, according to the Turkish Cypriot press.
Kibris Postasi reports that the leadership in the north is taking the necessary steps for the program to return after it was suspended during the tenure of the former Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar. The report does not provide details on the exact nature of the work or preparations but notes that the relevant committees are expected to complete the process before any official steps toward reopening can take place.
The program, which aims to foster contact and cooperation between students from both communities, is described in the report as a development expected under the leadership of Tufan Erhürman. Sources cited by the website suggest that Erhürman has shown personal interest in the matter.
The report also links these developments to a package of 10 proposals that Erhürman submitted to Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides, including a proposal to organise a U14 football tournament, an initiative framed as part of Confidence-Building Measures and efforts to strengthen intercommunal contacts.
‘Imagine’ is an Educational Program on Anti-racism Education/ Education for a Culture of Peace initiated by the Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR) in 2016 and placed under the auspices of the Bicommunal Technical Committee on Education in October 2017, after many months of efforts and with the agreement of the leaders of the two communities on the island at the time.