Hope you are keeping safe. Kindly see below the latest edition of country updates across the MENA on latest news regarding education in the region.

Visas and Immigration

UK visa services have now resumed across all visa application centres in the Gulf. Appointments are currently limited, the Priority Visa service is only available in all Gulf states, and the Super Priority Visa Services is not yet available in any location. Services and appointment availability are being kept under regular review. Our current service standard for all visit and student visas is 15 working days. UKVI is now (temporarily) issuing students with a 90-day vignette to travel and collect their BRP in the UK, instead of the usual 30-day vignette.More information can be found here: https://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/en

Advice on entering the UK and self-isolation requirements:

https://www.gov.uk/uk-border-control

National Restrictions from 5 January

Going to school or college:Colleges, primary (reception onwards) and secondary schools remain open for vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. All other children are learning remotely until February half term. The Government continue to prioritise the wellbeing and long-term futures of our young people as they study online.In the circumstances, it is not possible for exams in the summer to go ahead as planned. The Department for Education are accordingly be working with Ofqual to consult rapidly to put in place alternative arrangements that will allow students to progress fairly.

Going to university:Students undertaking training or study for the following courses have returned to face to face learning: Medicine, dentistry, subjects allied to medicine/ health, veterinary science, education (initial teacher training), social work and courses which require Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body (PSRB) assessments and or mandatory activity which is scheduled for January and which cannot be rescheduled. Students who are not on these courses have started their term online, as facilitated by their university or college until at least mid-February. If  students live at university, they should not move back and forward between their permanent home and student home during term time.

Guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-lockdown-stay-at-home#universities

Travel advice

For travel advice, please visit https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice. We encourage institutions who are considering travelling to sign up for alerts. We are also keeping up to date with local government websites for any updates and restrictions, so kindly feel free to contact us if you need any information and we will refer you to the relevant websites.IELTS

IELTS

In accordance with local health authority and government guidance, we have resumed IELTS testing across the UAE. The health and safety of test takers and test staff is our number one priority and we have taken the time to put in place all precautionary measures to ensure our customers can test confidently at our test venues.

For more information on measures taken, please visit: https://www.britishcouncil.ae/en/resume-your-ielts-journey-today 

For information on test availability please visit: https://www.britishcouncil.ae/en/exam/ielts/dates-locations

For more MENA updates, webinars, market insights and other IES services, please go to your alerts settings and select updates from MENA. If you have any feedback or require any additional information, please contact me on dina.kanan@ae.britishcouncil.org

Thank you and stay safe

Dina Kanan

UAE Manager, International Education Services

Bahrain:

Private and public schools in Bahrain to go back to remote learning from January 31

https://www.newsofbahrain.com/bahrain/69861.html

Contact Information

For more information about Bahrain, please contact Kawthar AlArab , Projects Manager (Kawthar.AlArab@britishcouncil.org.bh)

Egypt:

Ministry of Higher Education confirms the date of Mid-year exams

Higher Education scientific committee member condemned social media posts that spread misinformation about prescription that treats covid19. Dr Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, issued a new ministerial decision to settle exams for university students. This decision stipulates that the practical, laboratory and written examinations for the first semester 2021 will begin in all technical institutes of the Egyptian Colleges of Technology as of Saturday 20 February 2021.The decision stipulated that the examinations for the subjects of the second year students in the subjects of the first year would start on Saturday, March 27, 2021.The decision also stressed that all examinations should stop during public holidays and holidays. The decision affirmed that studies for the second semester will start from Sunday March 21, 2021. On a separate note, COVID-19 vaccination roll-out started on Sunday 24. The program starts with medical teams in COVID19 isolation, chest and fever hospitals using the Chinese vaccine Sinopharm and will be followed by other medical staff, 65+ years old people suffering from chronic diseases. The government will begin by distributing 50k doses at 40 medical centres (enough for 25k people) over the next three weeks.

Contact Information

For more information about Egypt, please contact Sahar Khamis, Head of Education Programmes, Egypt (Sahar.khamis@britishcouncil.org.eg)

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia extends travel ban, border closures to May 17

Saudi Arabia is extending its travel-restriction period and shift the date for reopening the Kingdom’s borders from March 31 to May 17 due to delays in delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, authorities said on Friday 29^th Jan. The Ministry of Interior announcement came just weeks after the Saudi government pencilled in the end of March to reopen the country’s land, sea, and air entry points for travel following a drop in the number of COVID-19 cases. On Jan. 8, it had also set March 31 as the date to lift the suspension of international flights. The latest decision was based on a statement by the Saudi health minister revealing that COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers had failed to meet deadlines for the delivery of contracted batches. A second wave of the virus spreading rapidly around the world, had also influenced the move, the ministry added. Before lifting travel restrictions for Saudis and reopening borders, the Kingdom was aiming to inoculate most of the population against the virus while in the process keeping infection rates to a minimum.

Contact Information

For more information about KSA, please contact Rizwan Safdar, Project Manager, (Rizwan.Safdar@sa.britishcouncil.org)

Kuwait:

Dr Ali Fahad Al-Mudhaf,  was announced on 14 December 2020 as the Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education He holds a Bachelor of Industrial Engineering from the US in 1983, a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering from US in 1988 and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Britain in 2000. Director General of the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training in 2018 and Director General of the Public Authority for Industry in 2006 and worked as an assistant professor at the General Authority for Medical Education and Training and Associate Professor at the Authority and obtained a member of the Higher Committee for the Professional Qualifications System, membership of the Executive Council of the Arab Organization for Industrial Development and membership of the Board of Directors of the Gulf Organization for Consulting Industrial and many local authorities. 

The education ministry announced on 10 Jan that there will be no paper or online exams for the first semester of the current scholastic year (2020- 2021) at public and private Arabic schools. Ministry officials also announced that studies will continue online at all levels and in all schools.

Contact Information:

For more information about Kuwait, please contact Heba Elzein , UAE Manger, Head of Partnerships and Programmes (Heba.Elzein@kw.britishcouncil.org )

UAE

UAE: Ministry of Education allows the gradual return of students to schools

https://gulfnews.com/uae/education/uae-ministry-of-education-allows-the-gradual-return-of-students-to-schools-1.1612332648321

Abu Dhabi schools: In-classroom learning to resume for all grades

https://gulfnews.com/uae/education/abu-dhabi-schools-in-classroom-learning-to-resume-for-all-grades-1.161233222530

How UK universities could offset Covid losses after the UAE's student visa move

https://www.arabianbusiness.com/education/457948-how-uk-universities-could-offset-covid-losses-after-uaes-student-visa-move

iCademy Middle East reveals 200% surge in enrolments amid remote learning boom : Dubai-based online school has witnessed surge in students in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar.

According to the school, which is the only KHDA-approved online school, the increase comes as a response to the substantial rise in Covid-19 cases that have caused students and parents to opt for online learning.

https://www.arabianbusiness.com/457869-icademy-middle-east-reveals-200-increase-in-enrolments

Contact Information

For more information, please contact Dina Kanan, UAE Manager, International Education Services (dina.kanan@ae.britishcouncil.org)