Educational endowments are one of the most important tools of sustainable development in societies, because of their active role in financing education and ensuring its continuity away from the fluctuations of public sector and private sector financing or seasonal donations. Educational endowments are defined as suspended assets that are managed in an investment and allocate their returns to support educational institutions, scholarships, or research and training programs.
According to the World Bank report (2022), investment in education enhances the gross domestic product of developing countries by up to 10% if it is effectively directed towards the limited income groups. Here, the importance of educational endowments, especially in countries that seek to achieve a long -term development vision to enhance self -financing for universities and academic institutions.
The Statistics of the International Endowment Corporation (IEF) indicates that the volume of educational endowments in American universities exceeded $ 840 billion in 2023, where Harvard University leads the size of a stop of approximately 50.7 billion dollars, allowing it to finance research, providing scholarships, and attracting competencies without relying on tuition fees alone. On the Arab level, Sultan Qaboos stops the University of Nizwa in the Sultanate of Oman is one of the leading Arab models, as it runs endless assets exceeding 130 million dollars, and is an example of a sustainable partnership between the government and the endowment sector to support higher education.
Educational endowments create a profound impact on both the social and economic dimensions, as they contribute to promoting social justice by providing educational opportunities for disadvantaged groups, and reducing the educational gap between classes. For example, a study of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2021) indicates that every additional year is spent by an individual in education increases his income by 9% and 15%, which reflects the direct impact of educational endowments in improving living levels and reducing unemployment rates.
On the economic level, educational endowments represent a sustainable financing mechanism that reduces the state’s burden in the long run, and contributes to building a human capital capable of supporting innovation and increasing productivity. The reports of the McKenzi Foundation (2023) show that educational investments of an endological nature generate an economic return by 20% on traditional investment in infrastructure, if it is better managed, and linking them to the needs of the labor market.
Educational endowments are also enhanced by the stability of the educational system in times of economic crises or disasters, as happened during the Kofid-19s, where universities with strong endowments in the United States and Canada managed to preserve their programs and provide emergency grants to students, compared to those that depend on government financing alone.
Socially, educational endowments contribute to creating equal opportunities and stimulating the culture of scientific excellence, especially if they are directed to support future disciplines such as artificial intelligence and renewable energy, which constitutes a lever for a transformation towards the knowledge economy in our Gulf countries.
In conclusion, educational endowments represent a vital pillar for building a knowledge economy, supporting educational justice, and sustaining the financing of academic institutions. With the expansion of educational challenges globally, the development of this sector has become a strategic necessity that is not an institutional luxury.
