The British Council has signed a five-year agreement between the Egyptian government and three leading UK qualifications and exams bodies.

This Memorandum of Understanding signed yesterday governs the administration and delivery of UK schools’ curriculum and exams and replaces several prior agreements between the UK exams bodies Pearson Edexcel, Cambridge International and the Ministry of Higher Education and the Ministry of Education.

It is the continuation of an agreement with the British Council first signed in 1990, and renewed in the year in which the British Council marks its 80th anniversary in Egypt.

The new agreement: 

•               Introduces a new framework to compare the grading of different examination systems (the UK’s new 9-1 grading, the UK’s letter A-G grading and Egyptian percentage grading). Both 8 and 9 is aligned to A* and 100% in the Egyptian grading system, 4 is aligned to C which is 70% in the Egyptian grading system;

•               Integrates new UK awarding body: Oxford AQA to join Pearson Edexcel and Cambridge International;

•               Consolidates a range of agreements between different bodies into one document;

•               Provides for more training provision for Egyptian state school teachers from both awarding bodies and the British Council.

The Ministry of Education have also accredited Pearson Edexcel as an examination board for primary and preparatory exams stages.

The British Council is a facilitator of UK academic and professional qualifications in Egypt.

Each year around 65,000 Egyptian learners take over 150,000 exams for UK qualifications – both academic and professional – through the British Council.

The British Council oversees the exams for UK education for all schools in Egypt that fall under the Egyptian Ministry of Education.

The new agreement provides for a more enhanced role for the British Council to work with the Ministry of Education to improve UK school education standards in Egypt.

Alex Lambert, British Council Acting Country Director in Egypt, said: “We are proud of the mutual benefit that Egypt and the UK gain in signing education partnerships like these through the British Council.

“This agreement has been two years in the making and seals the relationship between the British Council, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Higher Education and UK Exams Boards.

“Egyptians can benefit from the academic weight that UK qualifications hold both in Egypt and overseas, and parents and pupils find them increasingly reassuring and attractive.”

Kishore Roy, Director of Exams in Egypt said: “This is the culimination of two years of work by the British Council, using our unique position, local knowledge and our expertise in education and assessment, to support and link high-quality UK awarding bodies with an enthusiastic partner in the Egyptian government. Helping young people fulfil their potential is central to our work. We are delighted to lay the foundation for more Egyptian students to excel both educationally and personally over the coming years.”

Waseem AlHanbali, Regional Director at Cambridge International said: ‘We are delighted to announce the signing of the Protocol. It is a positive step towards our journey in supporting the international education in Egypt. This Protocol will regulate and provide educational benefits for students and parents through provisions of international programmes and qualifications for school education. We will work closely with our partners to ensure quality in education and develop Cambridge learners who are confident, responsible, reflective, innovative and engaged.”

Anna Burton Director, North & West Africa Pearson said: “Pearson is delighted to have signed a new protocol for the 9-1 grading system and International Primary and Lower Secondary curriculum with the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Higher Education. This protocol will help us create even more opportunities for Egyptian students, from Year 1 all the way to 12, to excel in education. We're looking forward to celebrating the successes of Egyptian students for years to come.”

Christine Ozden, Managing Director, Oxford AQA said: ‘We are delighted that the achievements of Egyptian students will be recognised to the new global standards at GCSE level. The new grade equivalencies enable students with strong passes to go further and stand out from the crowd when applying to Egyptian and international universities.’