Promise and potential: Expanding access to and the quality of education is a priority

With 20m people in some form of education, Egypt has the largest student body in the MENA region. The sector can draw on a proud history – Cairo’s Al Azhar is the world’s oldest operating university, and there is strong cultural education – and after a post-independence drive to expand schooling, universal access to basic education is guaranteed.

However, after several decades of progress, the system now lags behind international standards. Due to a shortage of resources, top-heavy administration, the difficulty of recruiting good teachers and outdated curricula, schools and universities are not producing the well-qualified, skilled graduates Egypt needs for its economic development. Reform has not been a priority for successive governments, and mediocrity has been tolerated. That said, there are still areas of excellence. The best educational institutions continue to attract talented teachers and lecturers, as well as students from around the world.

FACTS & FIGURES: Egypt’s 2013/14 budget allocates LE82.5bn ($11.7bn) to education, up 23.9% on the previous year. In 2012/13 the sector received 11.9% of government spending, equivalent to 4% of GDP, according to the Ministry of Finance.

There are nine years of compulsory education, from six to 15. The spread of access to education has raised literacy rates to 72%, according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). Illiteracy is largely, though not entirely, found among older people – 91% of the population aged between 15 and 24 can read. Illiteracy is still rather high, particularly among women (16% of females in the 15-24 age group are illiterate, a rate that rises considerably for older people).

ENROLMENT: This is despite high levels of primary school attendance. The gross enrolment ratio (GER) in Egypt’s primary schools was 102% in 2011, up from 100% in 2002 and 91% in 1991, according to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. GER measures the number of pupils in school equivalent to the number of children of school age. The rate of over 100% is caused by children of non-primary age attending primary school – possibly due to older pupils resitting years, although only 3% of Egyptian primary school pupils do this, and younger pupils entering the system early. In any case, the GER suggests a high level of primary school attendance, and that attendance has risen over the past two decades.

Figures for secondary schools are less impressive, with a GER of 72.5% in 2010, according to the World Bank, though this may be affected by children of secondary age attending primary institutions. The pupilto-teacher ratio at primary level was 27.73 in 2010, while for secondary it was 13.52. The former has risen over the past decade, while the latter has fallen.

PRIORITIES & PRESSURES: Egypt’s large, growing and youthful population, as well as the economic pressures of poverty and unemployment, mean that improving the education system to ensure it has the capacity not only to cater for millions of students, but equips them with the skills to obtain meaningful jobs, is essential for the country’s future.

Around one third of the population is aged under 15, and official unemployment topped 13% in the first quarter of 2013 – and is considerably higher among young people. Despite this, there are still vacancies for some skilled jobs – gaps in the labour market that the education system is not following.

Unfortunately, consecutive governments, even dating back to “stable” years of the Mubarak era, have proved themselves only occasionally able and willing to address the sector’s shortcomings. Tackling poverty more immediately, maintaining internal and external security, and bringing in investment in other areas, have taken priority, and continue to do so.

“To turn the country around, we need to look at education,” Sherif Kamel, dean of the American University in Cairo (AUC) business school, said. “Population growth creates demand for 800,000 new jobs a year, on top of current levels of unemployment. But education is not a quick-win sector, so it is not a priority for governments. When it does rise in the policy agenda there is no comprehensive approach that deals with education as a whole, rather than just fire-fighting. There is no holistic strategy looking at what will be needed in 5-10 years. Education is the most important sector in Egypt but the least well-served.”

The development of a long-term strategy seems unlikely in the immediate future; at time of press the interim government, like its predecessors, had other pressing issues to address. Its short-term nature, and uncertainty about what would follow it, were not conducive to long-term planning in a sector that is both politically sensitive and not necessarily a vote-winner. “There is a sense that the education sector, if left alone, will muddle through,” James Ketterer, Egypt country director for US-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) Amideast, told OBG. “But it is a real obstacle to social mobility if government schools are underfunded and not delivering talent.”

UNDER STRAIN: The system is under strain from the large number of students on the one hand and scarce resources on the other. It is also in need of modernisation in terms of curricula, teaching materials and methods, and infrastructure. While it continues to deliver the basics and has pockets of excellence, the system is not performing as well as it should.

The sector has not kept pace with Egypt’s economic and social development. Rote learning and lecturing are still at the centre of teaching, with too little engagement by students. The development of soft skills is overlooked, and technology too rarely used – to the frustration of students themselves. “Curricula are very classical,” said Kamel. “Pupils are very IT savvy and want to learn business skills, to think, to innovate.”

TUNNEL VISION: Education is organised in a way that funnels students on clearly defined, narrow pathways from a young age. There are limited possibilities of studying a broader range of subjects at university level in particular, and crossover between subjects is not cultivated. Changing majors is very difficult. This has the effect of limiting career options, even – arguably especially – for the most able students.

Early “decision points” at which pathways are determined narrow options further, leaving late developers poorly served. The system means that later career changes are more difficult – a problem in a modern economy in which jobs are not necessarily for life, and demand for different skills is fluid. To an extent, this is due to cultural expectations, as many Egyptians aspire to a fairly small range of professions: engineering and medicine in particular, and to a lesser extent law. There is still something of a stigma for those who fail to get into one of the more coveted professions.

PRIVATE EDUCATION: Approximately 15% of Egyptian students – from primary school through to university level – are enrolled in private institutions. The past 20 years have seen a considerable increase in the number of private schools in Egypt, due to a number of factors, including patchy standards at government institutions, rising income among the middle class and a growing number of jobs that require higher levels of education. In 1996 the Ministry of Higher Education permitted the establishment of new private universities, and since then 16 have been established. These include several that offer international qualifications in foreign languages.

Some are not particularly good but deliver more than nearby public institutions, while others deliver to the highest international standards. Naturally, those in the latter category – often international schools that offer internationally recognised European or North American qualifications – tend to charge high fees, comparable with their counterparts in Europe and elsewhere. In Egypt, an elite school education is still largely confined to the richest or most fortunate.

The AUC, established in 1919, is regarded as Egypt’s oldest existing independent university. It has a student body of 6200, with 500 undergraduates and 1200 graduates, as well as around 500 faculty, according to Kamel. It also trains 75,000 other students, largely in part-time courses. Accredited by both international and regional bodies, AUC adheres to US principles and standards in education. Average class size is 40, far lower than that of many public counterparts. AUC’s name – known well beyond the shores of Egypt – and its long history give it a strong brand both for Egyptians and foreign students.

Private education is not limited to schools and universities – private tutoring is big business in Egypt, mostly due to the shortcomings of the public school system and a focus on standardised test scores. According to a local press report, approximately 60% of primary and preparatory school pupils and around 80% of general secondary students receive lessons from private tutors, on whom parents spend at least LE800m ($114m) annually in total. Often, these are teachers from the public system working as private tutors in their spare time to supplement their wages.

HIGHER EDUCATION: As of mid-2013 Egypt had 23 public and 19 private universities, as well as 18 public and 81 private other higher education institutions, according to local press. In the public sector, Cairo University, Alexandria University and Ain Shams University in Cairo are considered the most prestigious. However, Mansoura University in the Nile Delta has gained ground in recent years, earning a reputation for using its resources wisely, maintaining its infrastructure well and delivering quality education, particularly in medical sciences. Some universities are huge by international standards – Ain Shams has upwards of 170,000 students and Cairo University more than 150,000. Private universities tend to be smaller, with as few as 2000-3000 students. The public system is over capacity, with a shortage of faculty and facilities. Class sizes at universities can go up to 1500 students.

Standards differ not just between universities, but within them; some institutions that are not necessarily specialist have particularly strong departments with excellent faculty. Kamel cites the examples of Cairo University and Ain Shams, which have very good medical schools. Ironically, a substantial proportion of their graduates are recruited abroad.

Fees vary widely. Cairo University has courses for as little as $100 per year – which goes some way to explaining the public system’s funding difficulties – while annual fees at private universities are usually $2000-3000, according to Kamel, which is affordable for many Egyptians. However, as with private schools, the best can charge much more: the AUC’s fees for full-time students, at $22,000-23,000, are comparable with those in many developed countries.

The funding gap between private and public universities is often reflected in the quality of teaching and infrastructure. Private institutions have more to invest in buildings, sports and other facilities, faculty, research and equipment. They also tend to offer more in the way of extra-curricular activities and, free of state control and often with a more progressive ethos – as well as smaller class sizes – provide students with greater opportunities to debate openly.

However, they are not all of the highest quality, and there is a perception that private institutions are primarily money-making organisations, or profile-raising exercises by their owners, which in some cases is not entirely incorrect. University evaluation is not always as rigorous as it should be, and a lack of continuous monitoring and assessment makes maintaining standards and competition more difficult.

OPPORTUNITIES: The fact that the AUC is five-times oversubscribed indicates the size of the market for quality international university education, and suggests that there is room in the market for new institutions offering similar standards – or for existing establishments to shift towards the international model and try to upgrade their faculty. With the public sector restrained by limited government resources, this is a natural space for private universities.

“Thousands of students are going abroad, so financial resources are available in Egypt,” said Kamel. “I hope that more private universities open. In 1996 it seemed unthinkable that they would open, and now there are 12.” He said there is room for at least two private universities in each of Egypt’s 27 governorates, though he hopes that many more will open.

Given the success of internationally accredited universities in Egypt, a huge domestic market, and the fact that the country continues to attract students from around the region – and in some cases the world – it is perhaps surprising that international universities have not sought to establish branch campuses in Egypt, as they have in Gulf states and elsewhere.

The government’s wariness towards private international education “franchises” may be one factor in this – low incomes and now concerns over political instability perhaps others. However, Ketterer is confident that, if the conditions were right, international branches could be very successful. “If a well-known US or UK university opened a branch campus here, it would find a lot of demand from people who are willing to pay,” he told OBG. “It would fill up instantly. There are fewer restrictions on freedom of speech in Egypt than in many Gulf countries, so it is a natural location for higher education.”

INTERNATIONAL ELEMENTS: However, the difficulties faced by Egypt’s higher education system lead many young Egyptians to consider studying abroad. There is a long tradition of the Egyptian elite studying at European and North American universities.

Yet the numbers leaving to study in these traditional higher education markets are not as high as one might expect, according to Ketterer, who said that there are more students from Jordan, Saudi Arabia and even Nepal studying for degrees in the US than from Egypt. Cost factors and tight visa regimes deter many, though this applies as much to many other emerging markets, particularly in the MENA region, as it does to Egypt. Amideast is researching what other factors may be at play, with the aim of addressing them and encouraging more Egyptians to apply overseas. However, this need not necessarily mean the US and Europe – Ketterer said that Egyptians are showing increasing interest in universities in newer markets such as Turkey, South Africa and Australia.

Ketterer, among others, would like to see greater cooperation between Egyptian universities and foreign counterparts, including year-abroad programmes. He cited the successful example of the State University of New York (SUNY), which runs dual diploma programmes that involve students spending two years at SUNY and two years in a university in Turkey, and receiving degrees from both. Not all such programmes have been a success, however – a scheme sending Egyptians to US community colleges attracted weaker students whom the colleges were ill-equipped to support, and returned them to Egypt with qualifications recognised by too few Egyptian employers.

According to Ismail Abdel Ghafar, the president of Arab Academy, greater cooperation with employers would also be beneficial. “Closing skill gaps between students and what employers are demanding would directly improve productivity, job creation and entrepreneurship. Current efforts – such as discounted course packages, university workshops and youth business incubation programmes – are useful, but more coordination and networking is needed between these programmes,” Ghafar told OBG.

FINANCING: Particularly given the limited public resources available at present, universities could do more to tap other sources of funding. Raising fees may be necessary in some cases, but this also limits access for the less affluent. Encouraging partnerships with the private sector – and donations from business, international partners and alumni – can help ease the financial pressures. Indeed, such funding can also be used to broaden access through scholarships, bursaries and hardship funds.

Few universities make much use of these external sources of funding at present, but the AUC is an exception. Its global network of alumni helps. Also, said Kamel, businesses and successful alumni “see a product that they want to be associated with”. Other top Egyptian institutions could do much more to bring in private funding, but for those which do not perform so well, it is a chicken-and-egg problem: the institutions are not appealing to sponsors and donors, and would find it hard to depend on anything other than government funding and meagre fees. A culture of donations and sponsorships for higher education has yet to become widespread, and the scope for better fundraising initiatives across the sector is significant.

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT: Egypt allocates just 0.5% of GDP to research and development (R&D), according to press reports – some estimate that the figure is as low as half that – against an average of 2.2% in the US and Europe. As with education as a whole, research has been held back as it does not offer a “quick win”. Substantial investments are needed in facilities and human capital, with results not emerging for years. There is little political and social pressure to develop R&D, and resources are directed elsewhere. Even when funds are available they are not always invested; a post-revolution rise in the government allocation to research went largely unspent, reportedly due to political unrest and bureaucracy.

Again, R&D at universities is held back by the lack of partnerships with business and donors which could provide the necessary funding and expertise. “The concept of endowed professorships does not exist here,” said Kamel. “However, there are certainly people willing to fund them.” Nonetheless, Egypt’s sizeable pool of talented graduates and areas of excellence in higher education suggest potential for greater development of its R&D capacity.

E-LEARNING & ICT: Expanding broadband connectivity to all schools is central to the National Broadband Strategy, “eMisr”. Formally launched in 2012, the programme has been delayed by Egypt’s ongoing political turbulence, but is widely regarded as an important, if ambitious, roadmap for information and communications technology (ICT) development by the private and public sector alike.

While there are a number of successful projects pioneered by major companies such as Intel and Cisco, which work closely with the Ministry of Education, broader development of ICT usage has been slower. As Muhammad Alzab, the president of the Human and Technology Development Foundation (HDF), an Egyptian NGO, told OBG, encouraging greater use of ICT in education and developing e-learning involves two prerequisites: high quality infrastructure, including high-speed internet, and reliable hardware; and good teachers who are familiar with technology. Egypt has some way to go in developing both.

ICT NEEDS: “The promise remains unfulfilled to an extent, because we need a lot of resources, and since the revolution these have become scarcer,” Alzab told OBG. “Money is being spent on equipment, but not enough on training. Training teachers is very expensive, and the day when all teachers are trained to use ICT is still far away.” Low salaries for teachers are one obstacle – graduates skilled in ICT tend to gravitate towards considerably more lucrative careers in ICT-intensive sectors, such as outsourcing, rather than education. Similarly, education administrators often lack the skills needed to operate IT systems.

However, investment in infrastructure and human resources could bring long-term cost benefits, with savings made on education administration and printed learning materials through better use of technology. “IT plays an important part in education, not just in IT lessons but in maths, chemistry and other subject curricula, as well as in administration,” said Kamel.

The HDF is a non-profit organisation focusing on problems in Egypt’s education system and solving them using technology, and is funded by donors including the EU. The foundation runs several projects to this end, including promoting: e-learning; greater cooperation and coordination between national and international organisations involved in education and IT; greater use of cloud computing by universities; greater awareness of intellectual property issues; and expanding a network of “smart schools” which make greater use of ICT. The HDF also works with the likes of Microsoft and Cisco to help graduates find jobs.

E-LEARNING: E-learning brings a number of benefits. For students in remote areas, or in schools with limited teaching materials, e-learning greatly increases access to information. It also equips pupils with the skills to use technology, particularly the internet, which are transferrable and highly useful in the job market.

Azab sees the EU’s European Schoolsnet programme, a partnership of government bodies to promote ICT use and connectivity, as a successful model. Unfortunately, “nothing comparable has happened in Egypt,” he said. This is not just an issue of relative affluence – other emerging markets, including Tunisia, Jordan and Gaza in the Palestinian territories have developed successful e-learning systems.

The EU-funded Smart Schools pilot project, due to be launched by the end of 2013, will see 20 primary and elementary schools selected for “smart” status. Every pupil will be given a laptop with internet access and a number of courses already installed, and will engage in e-learning programmes. The HDF aims to roll the project out to more schools if it is successful, though the scheme is relatively expensive, so this is likely to be an incremental process.

The HDF is lobbying for the creation of an Egyptian e-learning entity to partner with international counterparts and support the development of e-learning in the country. Currently, ICT projects in education are not always sustainable – they are axed when funding runs out or when those running them lose interest. Too often they are poorly coordinated, with managers and funding organisations reluctant to work with counterparts for fear of ceding control. Changes in government and reshuffling of ministers can also lead to existing programmes petering out.

An independent but official body could help sustain successful projects, unaffected by political changes. Currently, the private sector tends to offer project proposals directly to the government, particularly the Ministry of Education, and the HDF would like to play a greater role in mediating.

OUTLOOK: Egypt’s education system faces serious challenges that pre-date the 2011 revolution. The long-term nature of education policy and development, and the difficulties of reform and investment, mean the sector has not been a pressing priority for successive governments. Yet if Egypt is to fulfil its potential it will need to improve its education system, from school to university through to its research capacity. Increasing funding – difficult at a time of fiscal tightening – cannot be the only solution.

Encouraging the private sector to take advantage of opportunities to grow would increase both capacity and competition. Internationally oriented institutions already offer some of the best education in the country, and this is a segment that could expand further, potentially including branch campuses of international institutions. However, the vast majority of Egyptians will continue to attend government primary and secondary schools, so it is there that reform of curricula, implementation of technology and improvement in teaching are most urgently needed.