What happens in Washington, sadly doesn’t always stay in Washington: Amidst the plethora of executive orders and moves to reshape Washington, newly-inaugurated US President Donald Trump signed off on a 90-day funding pause to all foreign aid from the world’s largest foreign aid donor. Although Egypt was given an exception for its annual USD 1.3 bn of military aid, there were no exceptions for any of the other programs that the United States funds in Egypt — which includes USAID funding for scholarships for Egyptians at home and abroad.

All Egypt-bound non-military aid is now in limbo: Newly appointed State Secretary Marco Rubio will now reportedly vet all US foreign aid against the new administration’s foreign policy before turning back on to the tap, according to a State Department cable.

For some Egyptians students, the foreign aid freeze hit especially close to home: There are 1.1k Egyptian students on United States Agency for International Development-funded (USAID) scholarships who did not know whether the freeze would delay or even end their studies — with some also reliant on the scholarships for housing.

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But the heads of universities and the Higher Education Ministry were quick to step in: Shortly following the announcement from Washington, the Higher Education Ministry reassured the 877 students at Egyptian universities that they will be covered by their universities under the same arrangement — and beyond this if need be.

Support was also pledged to USAID scholarship-funded students abroad: Efforts are underway to support the seven students at US universities that have been left in financial limbo so they can complete their studies, Higher Education Ministry spokesperson Adel Abdel Ghaffar said.

The American University in Cairo also did the same for its 200 students on USAID scholarships: “Within 48 hours, we informed our students — some only in their first semester at AUC, others in their last, and everything in between — that we would cover their tuition, housing and educational expenses for Spring 2025,” AUC President Ahmad Dallal said in a message to the university students and stuff seen by EnterpriseAM. The university will do this “through budget savings and fundraising because of our deep commitment to the education and well-being of our students,” Dallal explained.

However, AUC wasn’t able to stretch its finances to also cover prospective AUC students on USAID scholarships about to enroll: “We understand the painful situation these students now face and wish we could accommodate them. We simply do not have the financial resources,” explained Dallal, referring to prospective students that had been awarded scholarships but are yet to enrol. The some 125 students about to enroll were split between students about to start their first semester and others to begin a year-long English-language bridge program before starting their degrees.

But the university was keen to stress that they’re trying to find a solution and that the door will still be open later on: Despite not being able to put together the funds to financially back the prospective students this semester, the university stated that their acceptance to the university will be deferred. AUC’s president also highlighted that it “will make every effort to fundraise to support them in joining AUC in the future.”

Efforts to fundraise seem to already be reaching a welcoming audience: Dallal pointed to a large number of alumni, previous scholarship recipients, faculty, and others that have reached out over the past week to express their interest in “contributing funds to support new and continuing students.” To aid the effort, the university set up a webpage to collect donations.

Staff are also being affected in a serious way: Grant-sponsored staff members at AUC and other institutions that administer the scholarship program have been suspended, with the university saying that it will cover the basic salaries of the 113 staff members as they search for alternative roles at the institution or elsewhere.

USAID’s technical and vocational program Egypt Workforce appears set to continue: The program, which prepares students in technical education schools for work, is expected to be less affected, a source involved in the program told EnterpriseAM. The private sector will continue covering student scholarships at institutions affiliated with their businesses, while the ministry will fund teachers’ salaries. USAID’s contribution primarily goes toward curriculum development and one-time training costs. Of the ten schools in the program, major businesses such as El Sewedy and Mountain View provide financial backing, and USAID’s direct role is limited to supporting high-achieving students and funding participation in international competitions, we were told.

Cutting off USAID funding is no small issue, considering its presence in Egypt: USAID’s partnership with Egypt has spanned over four decades, with investments surpassing USD 30 bn since 1978. The agency has played an active role in supporting programs to bolster economic growth, education, healthcare, and governance and ranks as one of the most prominent development organizations in the country.

Your top education stories for the week:

  • Coventry University has partnered with the British University in Egypt (BUE) to launch a Hydrogen Energy Training Hub, backed by GBP 25k from the British Council, to develop expertise in hydrogen production, storage, and transport. The hub will be based at BUE, with students also gaining access to workshops at Coventry University’s Egypt campus and online. (Statement | pdf).
  • SEP acquires majority stake in Riyadh int’l school: EFG Hermes-backed K-12 operator Spark Education Platform (SEP)inked definitive agreements to acquire a majority stake in Riyadh’s Qimam El Hayat International School. There is no publicly available information about the transaction size.
  • SIC officially increases stake in CIRA: Social Impact Capital (SIC) now owns 88.7%of CIRA Education after the transfer of 218.4 mn shares was completed. SIC held a 51.2% stake in the company prior to the EGP 3.4 bn transaction.
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