President of Damietta University Participates in the Meeting of the Council of National Universities Chaired by the Minister of Higher Education

Prof. Dr. Hemdan Rabie Al-Metwally, President of Damietta University, participated in the meeting of the Council of National Universities, chaired by Dr. Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, in the presence of Dr. Maher Mesbah, Secretary-General of the Council, council members, and a number of senior ministry officials. The meeting was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the New Administrative Capital.

At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Ayman Ashour extended his congratulations to the academic and research community on the upcoming New Year, expressing his wishes that it would bring prosperity, stability, and progress for Egypt and its people.

The Minister affirmed that the state attaches strategic importance to the file of national universities, considering them a modern and vital pathway supporting the development of the higher education system. He pointed to their role in providing flexible, advanced university education that responds to labor market needs and the rapid changes in knowledge and technology, contributing to the preparation of graduates capable of regional and international competitiveness, within the framework of investing in the Egyptian human capital.

He clarified that the expansion of national universities is not limited to increasing capacity, but focuses on building sustainable educational models based on academic quality and good governance, while ensuring integration between public universities and their affiliated national universities. This aims to maximize the use of available resources and achieve scientific and societal returns that support the state’s comprehensive development plans.

Dr. Ashour emphasized the importance of providing an integrated support system for outstanding students, noting that the number of full and partial scholarships granted during the 2025/2026 academic year has reached about 26,000 scholarships, an unprecedented figure. He added that work is underway to develop a centralized system for scholarship applications to ensure support reaches deserving underprivileged students, while establishing a national culture to support talented individuals as a future human asset.

He also praised the effective contribution of national universities to national initiatives and projects adopted by the ministry, foremost among them the Presidential Initiative “Alliance and Development,” commending the Egyptian universities that were selected within the announced alliances and their role in supporting sustainable development goals.

The Minister stressed the importance of continuing to develop infrastructure, administrative structures, and academic systems at national universities, while strengthening international partnerships and benefiting from international research cooperation and funding programs, especially Horizon Europe. He also highlighted the importance of maximizing the use of the Egyptian Knowledge Bank and supporting modern and interdisciplinary fields, particularly Artificial Intelligence, to help improve the ranking of Egyptian universities in international classifications.

For his part, Dr. Maher Mesbah, Secretary-General of the Council of National Universities, stated that the Council reviewed the final framework for the committee tasked with drafting a cooperation protocol between public universities and their affiliated national universities to enhance academic and administrative integration and exchange of expertise.

Meanwhile, Dr. Adel Abdel Ghaffar, Media Advisor and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry, announced that the Council approved changing the name of South Valley National University to Qena National University and Helwan National University to Capital National University, based on the relevant Cabinet decisions.

The Council also approved opening the application window for admission and registration for the second semester of the 2025/2026 academic year, within available capacities at national universities whose regulations permit, starting from January 10, 2026, for two weeks.

The Council was also informed of several international academic cooperation agreements, including the cooperation agreement between Benha National University and the American University in Cairo, and the cooperation agreement between Egypt University of Informatics and Hiroshima University in Japan, supporting international partnerships, knowledge exchange, and academic program development.