Egypt Explores Establishing New University Branches in Africa

Dr. Abdel Aziz Kanso, Egypt’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, welcomed a high-level delegation from Romania, including Dacian Cioloș, adviser to the Romanian President and candidate for Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie, Dr. Ciprian Mihăilă, the Romanian President’s special representative for Francophonie affairs, and Olivia Todirian, Romania’s Ambassador to Cairo. The delegation also included Minister Counselor Emira Mihăilescu from the Romanian Foreign Ministry responsible for Francophonie affairs, Deputy Ambassador Adrian Gaman, and advisor Oana Mariniescu.

Representing Egypt in the meeting were Ambassador Fatma El Zahraa Atman, personal representative of the President at the Permanent Council of La Francophonie, Ambassador Amr El Sherbini, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Multilateral Affairs and International Security, Minister Counselor Engy Sherif El Samanoudi, Deputy Assistant Minister for Francophonie Affairs, Dr. Ayman Farid, Assistant Minister and Head of Cultural Affairs and Missions Sector, and Dr. Salma Yousry, Assistant Minister for International Cooperation.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Kanso expressed his appreciation for the historical and distinguished relations between Egypt and Romania, highlighting their continuous development across various sectors, especially in higher education, scientific research, and innovation. He noted Egypt’s strong ties with European countries and its commitment to enhancing cooperation frameworks that serve mutual interests and support sustainable development efforts.

The minister emphasized Egypt’s interest in strengthening collaboration with the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF), recognizing its significant role in supporting development and building human capacities while fostering cultural and scientific dialogue among member states. This is particularly vital in Africa, which represents a priority in Egyptian foreign policy.

Dr. Kanso underscored the importance of promoting higher education and scientific research as essential tools for scientific diplomacy capable of disseminating knowledge while promoting values of peace and achieving sustainable development. This aligns with directives from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi aimed at bolstering efforts toward development, peace, and stability in the region.

The minister detailed initiatives by the ministry to enhance academic cooperation with African countries by expanding Egyptian university branches across the continent to build human capacities among its youth while providing high-quality higher education opportunities for African students.

He pointed out that Egypt currently has branches of its universities in Chad and South Sudan and is studying plans to establish new branches in several other African nations moving forward.

Dr. Kanso also highlighted Egypt’s efforts to support French-speaking educational institutions. He mentioned that President El-Sisi and French President Emmanuel Macron recently inaugurated a new campus for Senghor University in Borg Al Arab near Alexandria as a key institution under OIF that plays a crucial role in training African professionals in sustainable development fields such as governance, public health management, environmental management, and cultural heritage preservation. This initiative reinforces Egypt’s position as a regional hub for higher education serving Africa.

He expressed Egypt’s readiness to expand cooperation with OIF in areas such as knowledge exchange and research expertise while encouraging innovation among African youth. Additionally, he stressed the importance of collaborative research projects addressing developmental challenges on the continent while noting that building a knowledge economy is fundamental to achieving sustainable development goals across Africa. He also emphasized enhancing technological education and vocational training systems as essential pillars supporting industry needs.

On another note, he praised the progress made in academic collaboration between Egypt and Romania while expressing commitment to expanding partnerships between universities and research institutions from both countries to leverage existing capabilities in education, research science, and technology.

Dacian Cioloș expressed his pleasure during his visit to Egypt while affirming that OIF works to enhance the status of the French language as a tool for cultural communication that bridges peoples together. He emphasized leveraging French language appreciation to foster cooperation among French-speaking nations focused on development initiatives.

He noted that Egypt is a pivotal country within Africa with an important role in supporting OIF objectives while stressing the need to expand joint cooperation across vital sectors such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, health care agriculture technology.

Cioloș asserted that international cooperation should focus on serving new generations by implementing practical programs aimed at enhancing student exchanges as well as academic collaborations while facilitating knowledge transfer between nations positively impacting sustainable development efforts.

He also discussed OIF’s commitment to enhancing partnerships with other international organizations whose goals align with those of OIF to expedite achieving desired outcomes.

Ambassador Fatma El Zahraa Atman reiterated Egypt’s commitment to playing an active role within OIF based on its dedication towards achieving organizational goals centered around supporting sustainable development initiatives across various pathways while promoting values of dialogue diversity cultural recognition along with focusing on advancing human capacities through training across diverse developmental fields alongside fostering multi-stakeholder initiatives aimed at educational empowerment for women youth alongside boosting innovation especially within digital transformation realms which represent future languages.

Ambassador Amr El Sherbini conveyed greetings from Dr. Badr Abdel Aty Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation along with Egyptians abroad thanking Cioloș for selecting Egypt as his first stop during his foreign tour while expressing appreciation towards Romanian support provided towards Senghor University’s new campus inauguration at Borg Al Arab City highlighting Alexandria’s historical significance serving as bridge between Mediterranean shores prompting prominent figures like Boutros Boutros-Ghali along with top African officials back then choosing it as home base for Senghor University emphasizing importance activating OIF’s role particularly amidst current pressures challenges facing multilateral systems.

Olivia Todirian also affirmed deep-rooted relations between both friendly nations commending ongoing developments across multiple domains reiterating her country’s commitment towards enhancing collaboration with Egypt concerning higher education scientific research academic exchange benefiting mutual interests establishing sustainable partnerships contributing towards innovation development.