EGYPT's Smart Schools Network project was inaugurated this week by Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif in the presence of Minister of Communication and Information technology Tareq Kamel. In an effort to increase the usage of technology in the overall learning process, the project is a multi-lateral effort between Egypt's Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology, the Ministry of Education, the UN development programme and Italian Cooperation. The initiative also involves providing training programmes for both faculty and students that would make them eligible for an international computer driver's licence (ICDL) certification. This initiative is part of the government's national goal to improve the quality of education and transform Egypt from a paper-based society, to a digital one. The programme will target 38 primary schools in 16 governorates, where the ratio of students to computers will be one computer for every 10 students. With a stronger emphasis on technology, schools will also increase the number of hours students make use of computer labs. At a cost of LE25 million the programme will benefit 18,500 students, 2,500 teachers, and 300 managerial personnel equipping them with 2,677 computers.
