Bujumbura, July 14, 2011_Belgium has donated 7 million euros (9.8 million U. S. dollars) to Burundi in support for the East African country's education, the government said on Thursday.

A cooperation agreement was signed on Wednesday by the two sides to back the African country's five-year project of the "Initial Training for Teachers".

After the signing of the agreement, Belgian Ambassador to Burundi Jozef Smets said, "The project responds to challenges posed by initial quality training for teachers considering recent orientations that the government of Burundi decided in a bid to transform the education system to respond to challenges for the education for all."

According to a press release, the project centers on primary education which could extend from six years to nine years.