Egy pt : A Country's Journey to Securing Her Future Through Education

Egypt, known as part of the cradle of civilization, has contributed significantly to modern-day appreciation for math, science, and art. The country's education system has been influenced by its early civilization, which was practical, technical, professional, and utilitarian, aimed at establishing social stability by slotting individuals into their respective social, political, and economic classes. This education system also placed emphasis on a religious view of the world, with education containing religious and philosophical studies that aimed to achieve society's beliefs and ideals.

At the turn of the 21st century, the Egyptian government began prioritizing the improvement of the education system. With assistance from organizations such as the World Bank, Egypt has increased access to early childhood care and education and incorporated information and communication technology (ICT) at all levels of education. In 2008, Egypt launched its National Strategic Plan for Pre-University Education Reform, which is committed to ensuring quality education for all and developing a knowledge society. The plan aims to bring about a comprehensive, sustainable, and collective approach towards education.

In 2018, the Ministry of Education and Technical

Education launched an ambitious series of reforms called Education 2.0, aligning with the country's newly developed 2030 Strategic Vision for social and economic change. The reforms aimed to modernize Egypt's education system and improve the quality of education for K–12 schooling. These reforms sought to bring about large-scale transformation in the education system, which had persistently faced persistent strains such as a rapidly increasing student population, deteriorating teaching quality, rigid curriculum, inequality, uncertain political will for change, and a lack of resources.

Over the past three years, Egypt has transformed its education system into a competency-based system, amending 30 educational programs and adding new ones. In August 2022, the Ministry of Education announced the launch of the National Strategy to Reform and Develop Technical Education ("TE 2.0") to meet the needs of the workforce market according to international standards. A total of 85 curricula have been redeveloped and reformed, with the new curricula applied to all students in the first secondary class in private and public schools already implementing the new programs. The Technical Education 2.0 program has been prompted, in part, by evaluations of Egypt's TVET sector by the World Bank between 2012 and 2014, which showed that Egypt was giving more importance to the number of students passing through the system than the quality of education.

Currently, technical education has more students, around 2.2 million, compared to secondary education, with 1.9 million students. Technical education is a popular choice for students who do not meet the minimum grades required for secondary education, which leads to university education. The TE 2.0 strategy aims to provide jobs to graduates after three years of training, at 18 to 19 years of age, and has started implementing changes in its 2,300 technical schools. The technical education sector is divided into four categories: industrial training, commercial technical education, agriculture, and tourism. Commercial technical education is popular with young

The country's long-standing history of education and its commitment to reform and improve the education system make it a worthy example for other countries to follow. The country's focus on practical, technical, and vocational education, combined with a strong emphasis on religious and philosophical studies, has created a unique approach to education that is aimed at establishing social stability and achieving societal beliefs and ideals.

Egypt's recent educational reforms, such as Education 2.0 and TE 2.0, are ambitious and aimed at modernizing the education system, improving the quality of education, and meeting the needs of the workforce market according to international standards. These reforms include redeveloping and reforming curricula, implementing competency-based women, accounting for 65% of students.

Educational skills are also being amended to reflect job opportunities outside of Egypt, as the economy is unable to absorb all graduates into the workplace. All technical schools are expected to have adopted the competency-based approach by September 2024, and all teachers will be evaluated. Vocational and technical training are crucial to providing the necessary skilled labor and curbing the unemployment rate, and the focus on vocational and technical training must continue.

In summary, Egypt's education system has undergone significant changes to provide quality education for all and develop a knowledge society

The TE 2.0 strategy is a step in the right direction towards meeting the needs of the workforce market and align systems, and providing technical support to comprehensive technical education.

It is also encouraging to see that Egypt is working to align its educational skills with job opportunities outside the country, reflecting the changing global economy and the need to provide graduates with the necessary skills to succeed in the workforce.

As Egypt continues on this path of educational reform, it is sure to face challenges and obstacles. However, with its rich history and culture of education and its commitment to improving the system for the benefit of all, Egypt is well-positioned to succeed in creating a knowledge society and developing a skilled workforce that will contribute to the country's social and economic growth.