The government is looking to extend compulsory schooling from 12 to 13 years, with formal education set to begin from the age of five, according to a statement from the Education Ministry earlier this month. But the proposed plan — set to come into effect within two to three years to give the sector time to prepare for twice the number of students joining in a single year — will need to see private-sector investment increase to meet the greater number of students.

Education Ministry Spokesperson Shady Zalta put the start date for the 2028-29 academic year in comments to EnterpriseAM, with the move facilitated through merging the two-year kindergarten period into just one year and including it in the compulsory education.

More years of compulsory education means more students, which means we’re going to need more schools. To meet the resulting uptick in demand, the ministry is looking to court private developers to build 1k new schools, a senior government official tells EnterpriseAM.

The ministry is sweetening the pot to persuade private players to invest in new schools, with golden licenses available to foreign investors, addressing land availability issues, and permitting school construction on smaller plots than originally allowed to accommodate the scarcity of land in densely populated areas.

It’s hoping demand will get investors to look beyond a narrow focus on elite international schools toward other areas of private sector education. While private-sector education accounts for 17% of total enrollment — up from 10.2% in 2021 — a large proportion of recently established schools are in the international education segment, Association of Private School Owners in Egypt head Badawi Allam tells EnterpriseAM.

A move toward school models that address broader demand could significantly expand investment in the sector, Allam added. While rising construction costs and lengthy return-on-investment periods have deterred many investors from all but the most lucrative school models, the country’s demographics tell a different story. A cursory glance at spending power reveals there is a sizable segment of families priced out of more expensive school models yet willing to spend on their children’s education to move them out of the state school system.

The push aligns with broader goals laid out in the recently released second edition ofthe National Narrative for Comprehensive Development, which include increasing the private sector’s share of the education market to 20% by 2030.

Along with new schools, we will need new teachers, educational psychology professor Tamer Shawky tells us. But building the country’s stock of teaching staff will be hard considering that Egypt lost 127k teachers between 2018 and 2023, according to data from the narrative.

What’s next? The proposal is still under review, after which it will be presented for public consultation before being submitted to the House, Zalta tells us.

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