Ashraf AboArafe
The National Erasmus+ Office – Egypt organised an online webinar under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher Education and the European Union (EU) Delegation to Egypt on Thursday, October 15. Dr. Mohamed El-Shenawy, Advisor to the Minister of Higher Education for International Collaboration and Agreements, and Christian Berger, Ambassador of the EU to Egypt participated in the event.
Speakers reviewed the annual funding provided to Egyptian universities from the EU through the Erasmus+ programme (Capacity Building in Higher Education Projects) during the years 2014-2020. The funding exceeded 41 million euros in the form of 44 international projects being implemented within Egyptian higher education institutions, in partnership with research centres and the public and private sectors.
Egyptian universities coordinate 11 projects under Erasmus+, with a ratio of up to 25% of the total funding, to develop management systems and provide capacity building for university staff. This percentage is planned to increase in the coming years.
The total budget of projects funded by the EU for the year 2020 amounted to 6.5 million euros through seven international projects being implemented within Egyptian universities, in partnership with European universities. These projects aim at improving higher education through building institutional capacities, creating new academic programs and degrees, developing governance and management systems, and linking the needs of society to higher education.
During the webinar, speakers will present results of the projects selected for funding for the year 2020, with detailed statistics of the achievements of Erasmus+ and the participation of the Egyptian and international higher education institutions in the current phase of the programme (2014-2020). Recipients of funding will also share their experiences during the webinar, as well as presenting success story of a previous project.
For the years 2021-2027, the EU doubled the budget for Erasmus+ programme to reach 30 billion euros, with plans to increase individual mobility and student and academic exchanges.
