FILE – New Administrative Capital
CAIRO – 18 June 2018: The State Council is considering the draft law aiming to regulate the performance of the foreign universities' branches to be established in the New Administrative Capital.
The draft law to establish foreign universities'branches aims to develop the system of higher education and scientific research in Egypt and to strengthen the ties between Egypt’s higher education and that of developed countries.
The draft law stipulates that the foreign university may entrust entities in Egypt through a signed contract to establish its branch in Egypt and afford its operation. The minister of higher education shall establish a committee of representatives of ministries and concerned agencies to consider and study the request to construct the branch.
The decision to allow a new campus will be issued by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research after it meets all infrastructural and human resource requirements.
According to the draft law, the president shall issue a decision on establishing the branch upon the request of the minister of higher education and the approval of the Cabinet.
The branch should include faculties, institutes, research units, study programs, innovation centers and science cities.
The branch campus will pay an annual fee for the services provided by state agencies, which will not exceed 1 percent of the tuition expenses ofthe students.
The state agencies will provide administrative, security and educational support and will ensure that the foreign university is able to exercise academic and institutional freedom and independence. They will also facilitate the process of equalizing the degrees awarded by the branch campus with those granted by Egyptian universities.
The international branch of a university shall be committed to Egyptian provisions and shall notify the specialized ministry with the university's curricula;criteria to accept students in a university branch will be same as those of the main university.
Branch campuses will be required to enroll a percentage of Egyptian students and employ a percentage of Egyptian staff in administrative and teaching positions.
All certificates awarded by the branch shall be recognized in the country of the main university; additionally, there will be an annual allocation of grants to students,allowing Egyptians to study or train at the main foreign university.
Each branch campus is required to submit a five-year plan with the expected number of students and costs; the branch will fall under the supervision of the council set up by the Ministry of Higher Education to monitor quality.
On November 2, the minister of higher education announced during the International Education Conference held in the U.K., entitled “Cross Boundary Education in Egypt and the Chances of Investment in Higher Education”, that the New Administrative Capital will include six international universities from the United States, Britain, Hungary, Canada, Sweden and France.
He added that the government seeks to introduce a “new law for international branch campuses intending to operate in the education destination” and called for UK universities to “invest in the Egyptian market of education”.
He referred that the law would facilitate the licensing process for overseas universities in Egypt and the mobility of the staff, remarking that the law would be “aligned” with the Magna Charta Universitatum, a document containing principles of academic freedom and institutional autonomy that has been signed by hundreds of university leaders from across the world.
“We respect academic freedom and university autonomy,” he said.
During his speech, the minister stressed on the good relations between Egypt and the U.K., particularly in the scientific and cultural fields, and the partnerships promoted between Egyptian and English institutions.
The minister reviewed Egypt’s 2030 vision, asserting that this vision requires a strong infrastructure and human personnel qualified for growth and development.
On October 11, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi inaugurated Egypt’s new administrative and financial capital,located 45 kilometers east of Cairo.
The New Administrative Capital’s business park will encompass 20 towers, including the tallest tower in Africa at a height of 345 meters. Construction of the residential district started in May 2017 to include 25,400 units, including residential apartments, villas and commercial units.
Egypt is looking forward to having dozens of cities like the New Administrative Capital, President Sisi said during his speech at the inauguration ceremony of the new city’s first phase.
In the same context, the Universities of Canada, Egypt (UCE) in the New Administrative Capital announced on April 16 that the University of Prince Edward Island will begin receiving the first batch of Egyptian and foreign students by June 2018.
University of Prince Edward is one of the five Canadian universities under construction in the new capital and supervised by the Canadian and Egyptian governments. It will be the first university to open its doors for students in the new capital.
This new educational complex will be built on 50 acres with a total cost of LE 1.7 billion ($9.63 million). It consists of eight buildings; seven of them will be allocated for educational purposes, and the eighth building will be allocated for scientific research and development.
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