Towards universal literacy in Egypt

TOWARDS UNIVERSAL LITERACY IN EGYPT

Khaled KadahAlex Miller

Geoffrey DanielsDavid Ifkovits

Policy Proposals

• Policy 1: Literacy Promotion in Rural Communities

• Policy 2: Restructuring Egypt’s Educational Model

• Policy 3: Advanced models of literacy promotion

Political and Economic Background

• Population: 82 Million• GDP: $519 Billion• Emerging service sector• Rate of unemployment: 12%• Population below poverty line: 20%• Newly installed democratic regime

Literacy in Egypt

• Literacy Rate: 72% (UNESCO)

• 169th least literate country

• 7th largest contributor to world adult illiteracy

Proposal 1: Rural Development

• Official UNESCO rate is 72%– However, significant rural/urban gap

• Rural areas illiteracy rate: 36.6% of total rate

• Urban areas illiteracy rate: 20% of total rate

• Literacy necessary to develop human capital

Policy measures

• Mobilize local community – i.e. village councils,

mosques, universities, etc.

– Higher visibility– Increased attendance– Legitimizes program– Cost-effective

Policy measures

• Capitalize on the resource of local university students– Cost-effective– Familiar with the local

community– Incentivized by college

credit

Policy measures

• Adapt a flexible, regionalized approach– Specialized

curriculum • i.e. family planning,

digital literacy– Increases relevance – Reduces fall back into

illiteracy

Proposal 2:Inclusiveness of the education system

Wealth Gap

Issues• Egypt: 26• Libya: 17

• 3.7% of private household expenditure on education

• Adverse impact on low-income households

• 49% of personnel is non-teaching

Student/Teacher ratio

Private tutoring

Drop-out rateStaff structure

Policy measures

Short run:• Increase share of teaching personnel• Vouchers for private tuition

Long run:• Cap number of students per classroom• Tutoring within public schools• Drop-out: Financial support for low-income families,

sanction withdrawal

Proposal 3:Mobile Classrooms

• Compensates for literacy disparities between urban and rural areas

• Can span throughout rural areas

• Extremely cost-effective

Digital Literacy

• Broadens and emboldens literacy in modern day

• Pioneer Egypt in digital literacy throughout Middle East

• Investment in better skilled workforce

Thank you for your attention.