The Minister of Education witnesses the launch of the second community dialogue event on the strategic plan
Dr. Reda Hegazy, Minister of Education and Technical Education, witnessed the launch of the second community dialogue event on the strategic plan of the Ministry of Education and Technical Education for the years (2024-2029), in Luxor Governorate, in cooperation with UNICEF Egypt, with broad participation of all parties related to the process. Educational.
At the beginning of his speech, Dr. Reda Hegazy welcomed all participants in the activities of the second community dialogue, expressing his happiness and appreciation for their constructive participation, stressing that community dialogue activities will be organized in Alexandria Governorate, to come up with integrated recommendations with the participation of all relevant parties and experts.
Dr. Reda Hegazy said that in light of artificial intelligence and digital transformation, we will move from certainty to uncertainty, and the form of jobs will change, so the education system had to be changed. To prepare a student with mindset, skills, tools, character and lifelong learning; To be able to adapt and obtain suitable job opportunities.
The minister pointed out that the change must also include the teacher, the learner, the curriculum, administration, and examinations, explaining that education went through stages, as the first stage was 1.0, which is the stage of memorizing and remembering information, followed by stage 2.0, which included the use of the Internet and technology, and in stage 3.0, knowledge doubled, but it was The education system must prepare the student to produce knowledge, so the fourth stage 4.0 came, which is education that produces knowledge. Then comes the fifth stage, which is the stage of education that produces creativity. Therefore, attention must be paid to activities and capstone projects, giving the student the basic concepts, and he connects them, emphasizing the humanization of education, as technology You will never be a substitute for the teacher.
In this context, the minister continued that the Egyptian state is keen to nurture genius and excellence, so the School of Geniuses was established to include the origins of the top students from every “STEM” school at the republic level after conducting aptitude tests for them, explaining that this school will be linked through twinning with Egyptian and foreign universities. ,
The minister added that all of this necessitated changing the education plan and curricula and providing teachers with skills so that there is a clear and strong mechanism for selecting the most qualified new teachers, as there is no development without improving teacher performance.
The Minister added that the new strategic plan was prepared with great professionalism and cooperation with UNICEF, where a strong sector was analyzed over the past two years and the financing gap was calculated, explaining that today’s meeting is important in involving the community in planning so that they know the goals and generate self-monitoring that is better than External oversight and thus become part of the development process.
The Minister reviewed the importance of Egypt joining the Global Partnership for Education, noting that it is one of the gains in support of the Ministry of Education.
The Minister stressed that Egypt's membership in the Global Partnership for Education was developed on the basis of carefully structured plans, systematic analysis, and a methodology that relies on several steps determined by a scientific road map, which began with a review of previous strategic plans for education in cooperation and support from UNICEF Egypt.
The Minister pointed out that the strategic plan for the development of education and technical education aims to draw a road map to maximize the benefit of all components and resources of the state, represented by the Ministry of Education and Technical Education, indicating that it is a future plan to confront the ongoing challenges through a clear vision for reform and setting basic axes and specific priorities. The plan shows the national education reform agenda of the Ministry of Education and Technical Education “Egyptian Education Reform Project”, in addition to keeping pace with global developments and integrating international conventions, in addition to linking and integrating with sustainable development in its economic, social and environmental dimensions, and providing everyone with access to high-quality education and training, and providing the necessary skills for a sustainable future. .
The Minister also presented the axes of the education and technical education strategy, which include comprehensive and equitable access to education for all groups, quality and excellence in education in accordance with international standards, and sustainability and lifelong learning.
The Minister pointed out the priorities of the strategic plan, which include equity and inclusion, access and participation, quality of education and teaching, governance and management, digital transformation, innovation and green education.
The minister pointed out that Egypt is one of the few countries that resumed the educational process during the repercussions of Covid-19 due to its strong infrastructure.
The Minister spoke about the importance of availability, quality, governance and technology, explaining that this strategic plan was prepared and the sector analyzed in a professional manner, resulting in the completion of the executive plan.
The Minister pointed out that the Ministry’s vision for education revolves around a student who is proud of himself, proud of his country, accepts pluralism, and is capable of competitiveness, provided that it includes all groups, including children, women, and people of determination, as well as paying attention to values and respect.
He explained that in this context, the Ministry added some activities within the “Discover” curriculum starting from the primary stage, including introducing students to the principles of the ancient Egyptian language “hieroglyphics” with the aim of promoting the dissemination of the culture of learning about ancient Egyptian civilization.
The Minister also stressed the importance of caring for people of determination, so the book “Values and Respect for Others” was provided with about 22 signs most commonly used to deal with the deaf and hard of hearing.
For his part, Mohamed Abdel Qader, Deputy Governor of Luxor, thanked Dr. Reda Hegazy, Minister of Education, for his efforts to develop one of the most important axes of interest to the citizen, noting that Luxor Governorate has made great strides during the past three years in the field of education, teaching, and technical education, as well as university education.
The Deputy Governor indicated that several schools had been opened in the governorate, whether in general education or technical education, stressing that the density of classes in the governorate is appropriate and does not represent a problem, as the number of students in the classroom does not exceed 30 students, thanks to the efforts of the Ministry. Education and those responsible for it in the governorate.
In his speech on behalf of Jeremy Hopkins, representative of UNICEF Egypt, Shiraz, Head of the Education Department at UNICEF Egypt, thanked Dr. Reda Hegazy for his leadership, vision, and commitment to the education of all Egyptian children.
He thanked the partners from the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) for sponsoring today’s events, and Luxor Governorate for hosting this event.
Shiraz expressed his gratitude for UNICEF Egypt’s happiness in cooperating with the Ministry of Education and Technical Education, noting that the organization’s primary role is to support education in Egypt, and to work to ensure the support of many partners in the large education reform project.
He pointed out that today's workshop is the second to give an opportunity to ensure the greatest degree of participation from partners and those concerned with the educational process.
Shiraz explained with gratitude that the discussion today focuses on the education plan and its priorities, the challenges we face, and working to reach recommendations to solve these challenges.
The head of the education department at UNICEF Egypt added that Egypt has become a partner in the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), pointing out that this is not a simple matter, but rather requires distinguished leadership from the ministry, defining and knowing international standards, and involving all partners in the work, which indicates that Egypt is moving at great pace. In the field of education, it has become at the heart of the international educational community that leads the education process in the world.
Shiraz also mentioned in his speech, “How to move education in Egypt forward,” expressing his hope that all Egyptian students will obtain a distinguished high level of education, noting that education is the basis for building human beings in Egypt, especially the youth.
For his part, Nader Nabil, Head of the Dual System Governance Component at the German International Cooperation Agency (GIZ), said that the agency seeks to achieve Egypt’s 2030 vision for sustainable development, in order to create better social and economic opportunities for the Egyptian people, through implementing projects in the fields of technical education, employment, and supporting the private sector. Water, energy and governance.
Nader Nabil added that within the framework of the partnership between the Ministry of Education and Technical Education and the German International Cooperation Agency, projects were implemented to support technical education in Egypt.
He pointed out that we are currently witnessing the support provided in two projects (the employment support project and the technical support project for the Comprehensive Technical Education Initiative), stressing that it targets several axes, the most important of which is improving the quality of technical education by supporting the establishment of the Department for Improving and Assuring the Quality of Technical Education in the Ministry, and establishing the Egyptian Authority to Guarantee Quality and accreditation in technical education (Itqan), supporting private sector partnerships to develop competencies through a group of promising economic sectors, improving the governance of the dual education system, supporting the establishment of system management platforms at the central and governorate levels, improving the quality of training and teaching for schools and companies, in addition to developing... Curricula to keep pace with the requirements of the labor market, in addition to developing the capabilities of technical education teachers, supporting the establishment of a central administration for technical education teachers, and activating the courses of the competent authority to create technical education cadres.
At the end of his speech, Nader Nabil praised the cooperation and partnership with the Ministry of Education and Technical Education and the close partnership with the private sector and all entities working to support technical education in Egypt.
This came in the presence of Shiraz Shakra, Head of the Education Department at UNICEF Egypt, Nader Nabil, Head of the Dual System Governance Component at the German International Cooperation Agency (GIZ), and Dr. Hanem Ahmed, an education policy specialist at UNICEF Egypt.
From the Ministry’s side, Dr. Ahmed Al-Mohammadi, Assistant Minister for Quality and Strategic Planning, Major General Yousry Salem, Assistant Minister for the General Authority for Educational Buildings, Dr. Akram Hassan, Head of the Central Administration for Curriculum Development, Khaled Abdel Hakam, Head of the Central Administration for Directorate Affairs, and Dr. Zainab Khalifa, Director of the Professional Academy for Teachers, attended. Dr. Rabab Zidane, Director General of the General Administration for Educational Leadership Affairs, directors of educational directorates in the Upper Egypt sector, and a number of ministry leaders.
A number of educational experts, the Board of Trustees, parents, teachers, guardians, teachers, and students also participated.