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Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Abdelaziz Konsowa affirmed Egypt’s commitment to strengthening co-operation with UNESCO in the fields of higher education, scientific research, technology, and innovation, with a particular focus on supporting capacity-building across the African continent.

Konsowa made the remarks during a meeting on Friday with Robert Bouza, Acting Regional Director of UNESCO’s Office in Egypt and Sudan.

During the talks, the minister underscored Egypt’s keenness to reinforce its close partnership with UNESCO, particularly in advancing higher education and scientific research across Africa. He highlighted Egypt’s commitment to supporting African countries in education, science, and research while contributing to building scientific and human capacities across the continent to help achieve sustainable development.

The two sides explored opportunities for co-operation in strengthening capacity-building in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), an area Konsowa described as central to the ministry’s strategy for promoting innovation and a knowledge-based economy.

He told the UNESCO official that Egypt is expanding the establishment of technology parks while strengthening research centers within state-run universities nationwide.

The discussions also addressed prospects for co-operation in advancing digital transformation in higher education, including benefiting from UNESCO’s expertise in developing digital infrastructure and scientific content archiving.

Konsowa highlighted the expansion of Egyptian university branches in several African countries, including Chad and South Sudan, with the chief aim of strengthening academic co-operation and human capacity-building across Africa, while also encouraging student exchange and attracting international students to study in Egypt.

For his part, the acting regional director of UNESCO’s Office in Egypt and Sudan praised the significant progress achieved in Egypt’s higher education sector over the past few years, reaffirming UNESCO’s commitment to expanding co-operation with Egypt, particularly in digital transformation, capacity-building, and the exchange of expertise among academic institutions.

Source: The Egyptian Gazette