Toshiko Abe, Japan’s Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, visited Egypt from May 4 to 5 as part of efforts to deepen educational and scientific collaboration with African countries in the lead-up to the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9).
Recognizing Egypt’s leadership in Africa and its proactive adoption of Japanese educational practices—most notably the “tokkatsu” (special activities) model—Minister Abe held a series of high-level meetings and site visits aimed at reinforcing bilateral cooperation.
During her visit, Minister Abe met with Egypt’s Minister of Education and Technical Education, Mohamed Abdel Latif, and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Ayman Ashour. Discussions focused on the expansion of key collaborative projects such as the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-JUST) and the Egyptian-Japanese Schools (EJS), which currently total 55 nationwide, with 15 more scheduled to open this fall.
The officials also reviewed progress on the upcoming EJ-KOSEN project, a technical education initiative slated to launch in September, designed to cultivate highly skilled engineers and specialists. The two sides expressed mutual interest in expanding future cooperation in industrial human resource development and inclusive education for individuals with special needs.
Minister Abe also met with Amr Adly, President of E-JUST, to explore ways to further strengthen institutional collaboration. In addition, she toured an applied technology school that trains technicians at the secondary level, the Japanese School in Cairo, and the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM).
Her visit also included consultations with the World Bank’s Country Director in Egypt and the President of Cairo University, underscoring a shared commitment to educational innovation and international partnership.
