A British medical university is setting up shop in Egypt: The UK’s NHMC Egypt-focused healthcare arm NHMC Medical Services is launching Egypt’s first accredited British medical school in partnership with the UK’s Aston University. The college is part of a new EGP 15 bn medical education project in East Cairo.

(Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links to our background as well as external sources.)

The details: The university, developed in collaboration with Aljar Development, will be part of a 24-feddan integrated medical city in the Aljar British District. The college will grant fully accredited British degrees from Aston University, making it the first of its kind to operate in Egypt and offering an alternative to studying abroad at a lower cost with equal academic quality. The campus will offer high-end student and faculty housing, alongside integrated facilities including gyms, restaurants, banks, and retail centers to create a full-service living and learning environment.

Who’s funding the project? NHMC will fully finance the medical city project, including the university, using a combination of bank financing and the company’s own resources.

REMEMBER- Aljar Development and NHMC unveiled the 46 acre project in the Aljar British District in May, set to include hotel and residential units, a 24-acre medical city, commercial and administrative spaces, and an educational zone. They announced that construction had begun for the British medical school and delivery is expected within three years.

We first heard about this last year: The project was first announced in February 2024, with NHMC’s local arm inking an agreement with the New Urban Communities Authority to build a USD 300 mn integrated medical-educational city.

Aston is replacing Buckingham: The original plan was to partner with the University ofBuckingham to launch the region’s first British colleges of medicine, nursing, and physiotherapy, as well as Buckingham’s first teaching and private hospital in the Middle East and Africa. NHMC has since opted to move forward with the higher-ranked public Aston University instead.

About the NHMC partnership: NHMC is the project’s primary owner and is responsible for designing, building, and operating the medical city, including the academic side. Aljar will only handle the residential and commercial development, NHMC Chairman and UK Cheshire County Royal Deputy Nasser Fouad told EnterpriseAM. This is NHMC’s first international experience in establishing universities or educational zones, despite managing hospitals and education institutions in the UK for over 30 years. The plan is to start in Egypt and expand regionally afterward.

A big step for regional medical education: The project "marks the beginning of a new era in medical education and healthcare in the Middle East," Fouad said, adding that the school will offer advanced medical and health sciences programs to train internationally qualified professionals and help position Egypt as a hub for medical tourism. The project aims to deliver a comprehensive health-education model that makes quality British medical education more accessible to students in Egypt and abroad, Aljar founder and MP Ahmed Abdel Meguid said. UK Ambassador to Cairo Gareth Bayley said that “the initiative strengthens the strategic partnership between Egypt and the UK in education and healthcare.”

When can we expect the launch? Aston University Egypt is expected to open its doors in September 2027, with the first intake being for the medical program before gradually expanding into other disciplines in subsequent phases.

Why Aston University? Aston will deliver authentic British education in Egypt, giving students the chance to study to international standards without having to travel, Fouad told EnterpriseAM. It will follow the full British academic model and is accredited by the UK’s General Medical Council, enabling its graduates to practice medicine in the UK directly with internationally recognized credentials, he added.

What’s the plan? The university will focus on medicine and nursing in its first phase, with plans to add more disciplines later. All programs will be aligned with British standards and designed to meet local and regional labor market needs. The campus will have capacity for 7k students, starting with an initial intake of around 200 medical students. NHMC also plans to open additional Aston campuses across Egypt and regional branches later on, targeting international students from Arab and African countries.

More plans in the pipeline: NHMC is currently studying the possibility of listing parts of the project on the EGX or launching an education-focused investment fund, though no final decision has been made, Fouad said.

Tags: