Egypt’s government is underway to establish a specialized database of all Egyptian scientists and senior experts residing outside the country, to better utilize their expertise, according to a press statement released by the Ministry of Immigration (MOI) on Sunday.
Minister of Immigration Nabila Makram Ebeid met with Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, to discuss the possibility of forming an association entitled “Egypt Can” which would include the specialized database. Both ministries will coordinate to choose the association’s board from scientists inside and outside Egypt.
Ebeid stated that the purpose of the association is to benefit from the minds of expatriates, establish a link between Egypt and abroad, maximize benefits gained from scientists, uncover more data about them and their various disciplines, as well as help the youth acquire training grants outside the country.
She also added that the expatriate scientists and experts would certainly be cooperative toward this step, which will benefit the country institutionally and allow them to be categorized easily.
Ebeid added that a joint committee of both Ministries has been formed and will meet next week to choose from the scientists’ names that have been nominated to put the final touch to the project and also communicate to offer the new post.
Abdel Ghaffar added that the association aims to organize the affairs of scientist expats and to benefit from them in an institutionalized manner, not individually or through a conference.
Ghaffar stressed the importance of the expertise of these expatriate talents, especially the younger researchers, through the establishment of a database that includes their scientific specialization in preparation for the announcement of the “Egypt Can” Association to the public.
“This will also create bridges to communicate with Egyptian scientists permanently and continuously, so that they can contribute to state building in accordance with the State Sustainable Development Plan 2030,” Abdel Gaffar said in a press statement.
He also said that there are around 60 to 70 young Egyptian scientists around the world who were educated in Egypt and hold important posts in some of the world’s largest universities, such as Cambridge, Oxford and Harvard.
Ghaffar stated that their connection to Egypt is significant, and that the association’s board will establish a future plan for Egyptian scientists in the country, connecting them to the minds abroad and hosting them in Egyptian universities for a period of no less than 6 months, possibly up to a year, so as to allow students to benefit from their vision.
