* Dr. Ayman Ashour: there are two sides to linking the study with the labor market: the first is academic, and the second is professional
* Minister of Higher Education: the importance of concerted efforts to develop the education and training systems
* Minister of education and technical education: qualifying educational cadres to match the new global requirements
* Minister of Labor: partnership with the Federation of industries and the “Start” initiative to develop training programs that meet the changing needs of the labor market
* The meeting reviews the danger of fictitious educational entities and their negative impact on the educational process and the labor market
* Formation of a joint committee including representatives from the concerned ministries to study the needs of the labor market and determine its priorities
Under the chairmanship of Dr. Ayman Ashour, Minister of higher education and scientific research, and the membership of Mr. Mohammed Abdul Latif, Minister of education and technical education, and Mr. Mohammed Gibran, Minister of Labor, the first meeting of the ministerial committee was held to implement the project of harmonizing study outcomes and the labor market, at the ministry’s headquarters in the new administrative capital.
At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Ayman Ashour stressed the importance of fruitful cooperation between the Ministry of higher education and scientific research and the ministries of education and technical education and labor, stressing that the concerted efforts are aimed at developing the education and training systems to graduate qualified cadres capable of competing in the changing labor market, and thus achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (Egypt Vision 2030).
Dr. Ayman Ashour also stressed the need for cooperation between the concerned ministries to develop students ‘ skills, starting from the pre-university stage, through the university stage, to the labor market, pointing out that this cooperation comes within the framework of foreseeing the future labor market requirements, and qualifying graduates to meet its changing needs, in line with the vision of the political leadership in localizing industries, and raising the quality of Education.
The minister pointed to the priority given by the state to the development of all axes of the education system, especially the human element, through good selection and qualification, both technical and personal, to ensure the achievement of the highest degrees of objectivity, impartiality and merit, reflected on the quality of the Educational Service received by students.
The meeting discussed ways to develop training programs to suit the requirements of the labor market, provide real job opportunities for graduates, link education with the labor market, search for mechanisms to link the outputs of higher education to the needs of different sectors, and encourage cooperation between universities and companies.
Dr. Ayman Ashour explained that there are two ways to link the study with the labor market: the first is academic, represented by various university programs, and the second is professional, achieved through university centers of excellence that work to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and the requirements of the labor market, enabling students to gain the necessary practical experience.
During the meeting, the current efforts to raise the level and develop the level of university graduates to meet the requirements of the labor market were reviewed, and opportunities for cooperation between the concerned ministries were discussed to enhance and expand these efforts.
The meeting touched upon the danger of fictitious educational entities, their negative impact on the educational process and the labor market, and the need to take deterrent measures, including tightening penalties, in cooperation between the concerned authorities to combat and limit these entities to protect the rights of students.
For his part, Mr. Mohammed Abdul Latif, Minister of education and Technical Education, stressed the importance of human development, pointing to our need to look at the past and the future to assess the current situation, pointing out that the accelerated global changes, such as the Fourth Industrial Revolution and digital transformation, require a focus on innovation, as competition has become global, not local, and therefore educational content and teaching skills must be developed to enable students to keep up with these changes, as well as the need to restructure educational cadres to match the new global requirements, stressing the need for cooperation to achieve this vision and develop an educational system that keeps pace with future aspirations.
In his speech, the minister of Labor explained the ministry’s commitment to developing the vocational training system, pointing to the existence of a wide network of fixed and mobile centers spread across all governorates of the Republic, which work to qualify young people for the local and international labor market, explaining that the current efforts are focused on modernizing these centers and providing them with the latest training programs, through cooperation with the private sector and the training and rehabilitation fund, stressing the importance of partnership with the Federation of Egyptian Industries and the “Start” initiative to develop training programs that meet the changing needs of the labor market, with the aim of restoring the position of qualified Egyptian worker in the global markets.
At the end of the meeting, the attendees agreed to form a joint committee comprising representatives from the concerned ministries to thoroughly study the needs of the labor market and determine its priorities, to form the visions of the ministries in developing their programs to qualify graduates on the results of this study, which ensures the suitability of Education outputs for the labor market.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Mohammed Youssef, former minister of Education, Dr. Omar Sharif, acting secretary general of University Hospitals, Dr. Ahmed al-Anani, adviser to the minister for health policies, Dr. Ayman Farid, Assistant Minister for strategic planning, training and qualification for the labor market, adviser Atef Omar, legal adviser to the ministry, Mr. Mohammed Ghanem, head of the central department for the affairs of the minister’s office, from the Ministry of education and Technical Education, Dr. Ahmed Daher, Deputy Minister, Dr. Ayman Baha Al-Din, deputy minister, and from the Ministry of Labor, Mr. Abdulwahab Khader, media adviser.
It is worth mentioning that Dr. Khalid Abdul Ghaffar, Deputy Prime Minister for Human Development and Minister of Health and population, had announced the formation of a committee headed by Dr. Ayman Ashour, Minister of higher education and scientific research, with the membership of Mohammed Abdul Latif, Minister of education and technical education, and Mohammed Gibran, Minister of labor, in order to develop executive plans that achieve integration and interconnection between technical education industrial and technological schools, technological universities within the framework of the state’s keenness to achieve harmonization between Study outcomes and the labor market.
