Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on Tuesday announced the formation of two subsidiary specialist councils aimed at addressing nationwide social and educational issues. El-Sisi issued presidential decrees to form the Community Development Council and the Education and Scientific Research Council. El-Sisi had announced at Cairo University on Sunday that special councils will be formed under the auspices of the presidency to play an active role in all branches of government. The Community Development Council, according to a presidential statement, has been formed with the aim of tackling negative social phenomena like street children and sexual harassment in addition to combating extremist thoughts, improving religious discourse and addressing preventative medicine and public health." Nine of the council's 18 members are women, while many others are young, including experts in technology, development, medicine, religion and architecture. Meanwhile, the Education and Scientific Research Council aims to achieve more coordination between Egyptian research centers and to maximise their role in "confronting the challenges facing Egypt's society," particularly education. The 11-member council includes six women. On 6 September, El-Sisi formed a presidential advisory council made up of academics and experts. The council was to advise on national projects, and work on correcting religious discourse, improving media discourse and the quality of education. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/112103.aspx