PARIS, March 27, 2018 - The Egyptian government is exerting strenuous efforts to upgrade the education system through taking advantage of the latest digital technologies and boosting the skills of teachers in such a way that enables them to carry out their duties effectively and efficiently, The Minister of Education and Technical Education, Dr Tarek Shauoki, said on Tuesday. Addressing "Mobile Learning Week 2018" conference, which is being organised by the Paris-based United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Minister Shauoki stressed the keenness of the Egyptian leadership on the comprehensive development of the education system after it had witnessed a decline over the previous decades due to social and economic changes. He pointed out that this task represented a major challenge in a country of 100 million people. The Ministry of Education seeks continuously to enhance the professional skills of teachers as an asset to the development of the educational process, the Minister said. The government launched last year the Egyptian Knowledge Bank, which is the largest online archive in the world and a source that provides access to learning resources and tools for educators, researchers, students, and the general public of Egypt free of charge, Minister Shauoki said, adding that the Egyptian Knowledge Bank has become the main platform for new programmes. He stressed that the Ministry has been working for several months to devise an ambitious plan to bring about a comprehensive development in educational process in addition to providing new technologies for learners, especially since the previous education system was no longer useful. The Ministry is racing against time to prepare fresh school curricula for about two million children in the primary stages of education, the minister of education told the event. Students of higher stages will also be included in the educational revolution that Egypt seeks to launch. He stressed that the Ministry is exerting tremendous efforts to end the complex of the general secondary school certificate that made students as well as parents care about obtaining the certificate at the expense of their skills and talents. On the sidelines of the conference, Minister Shauoki will hold today a series of meetings, including a meeting with French Minister of National Education Jean-Michel Blanquer to boost bilateral co-operation ties. Tomorrow, Minister Shauoki will take part in a forum in the presence of ministers of education and communications from various countries with the aim of exchanging expertise in the field of information technology. Minister Shauoki arrived yesterday in France on a three-day visit for participating in UNESCO's flagship ICT conference, Mobile Learning Week, which kicked off on Monday in Paris. The conference will last till March 30. Mobile Learning Week 2018 is being organised in partnership with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations specialised agency for ICT. The 2018 event is organised under the theme "Skills for a connected world".
