In October The British Council, the British Embassy and BIS organised a policy forum in Cairo attended by Egyptian Minister for Higher Education and Scientific Research Ashraf El-Sheihi.

The forum was the centrepiece of a weeklong visit to Egypt conducted by Professor Grimes and 20 British education experts, including government officials and leaders of some of the UK’s top universities. It provided British and Egyptian experts an opportunity to discuss in detail key areas where UK experience could help shape Egyptian reform efforts – for example, in developing research infrastructure, quality assurance systems, and leadership and management of the sector. They also discussed prospects for partnership between the two governments, as well as between individual university and research institutions in the UK and Egypt. The UK’s work on higher education reform in Egypt is just part of the UK’s wide-ranging effort to support young Egyptians with education and skills. Since 2010, the British Council has helped 75,000 Egyptians learn English or gain internationally-renowned UK qualifications. Through the prestigious Chevening Awards programme, the UK has offered 170 postgraduate scholarships to Egyptians over the last five years; the number for the next five years is expected to reach over 300. The £20m Newton-Mosharafa science and innovation fund was launched in 2014 and is expected to provide funding for over 300 PhD scholarships, placement schemes, and post-doctorate fellowships.

A British education is already attractive to many Egyptian students. Through independent links between British and Egyptian universities, 15,000 Egyptian students take UK-accredited degrees at universities such as Ain Shams University, the British University of Egypt, and the Arab Academy for Science and Technology in Alexandria, which Professor Grimes and the delegation visited earlier this week.
For more information please download the press release below.