A decision to base the Arab Open University in Kuwait has ended years of uncertainty but has been greeted with disappointment by Egypt, Bahrain, Lebanon and Jordan, which were competing to host the university.
According to Middle East analyst Gerald Butt, the long debate over the university's location reflects the difficult process of regional decision-making: "It is almost impossible to achieve a consensus among Arab states. National rivalry comes before anything else."
Jordan lost because its higher education council does not recognise distance-learning degrees. Rebecca Walton, director of the British Council in Jordan, said: "King Abullah is keen to increase access to education, but there is still a bit of a way to go on the regulatory environment."
The rector of the Arab OU, Mohammed Hamdan, said that Kuwait was selected because it had agreed to donate the site for the building and to provide free temporary accommodation until the premises are complete.
From October 2002, students will be able to sign up for courses in information technology, business administration, English and in-service teacher training.
Course material will be supplied by the UnitedKingdom's Open University, which will be responsible for quality assurance.