Egypt is pushing to close the gender gap in education: Egypt is stepping up its efforts to address gender disparities in education, with a clear focus on keeping girls in school and enhancing their learning experiences, according to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Despite reaching gender parity in enrollments, more than half of Egyptian girls — around 53% — drop out before completing secondary school, driven by early marriage and deep-rooted gender norms.

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Why this matters: The fact that over half of girls drop out before finishing secondary school is a pressing issue. Early marriage and entrenched societal expectations are major obstacles, especially in rural areas where female enrollment lags far behind urban regions. Tackling these challenges is essential if Egypt wants to hit its Vision 2030 targets and build an inclusive education system — and by extension, the economy as a whole.

Progress has been made, but there’s still a long way to go: The Egyptian government has made it clear that addressing gender disparities in education is a cornerstone of its broader gender equality agenda. Egypt’s Vision 2030 lays out specific objectives to improve educational opportunities for girls, particularly in marginalized areas. Significant progress has been made in reducing school dropout rates by linking enrollment and access to healthcare with social support through the Takaful and Karama programs, a government source told EnterpriseAM. However, challenges remain, especially in rural areas where cultural traditions and early marriage hinder female education.

Financial barriers to education are a big part of the problem: A key obstacle for girls from low-income families is the financial burden of continuing their education. The government aims to ease this pressure by providing targeted financial support in underserved rural areas, where the gap is widest.

And the private sector has an important part to play in solving this: The private sector should not just focus on setting up schools that cater towards the country’s wealthiest households, but should also be setting up more affordable schools open to a larger section of the population, industry insiders tell EnterpriseAM. Some companies, including CIRA Education, are already doing this, with the educational outfit expanding its affordable education offerings outside of Cairo.

There’s also a regional dimension to the problem that needs addressing: There’s a 12.5 percentage point overall difference for secondary school graduation levels between rural and urban areas in favor of urban areas, according to a working paper (pdf) from the Egyptian Center of Economic Studies (ECES). This disparity — which also affects male students — is something that needs to be addressed, Association of Private School Owners in Egypt head Badawi Allam told us.

Cheap land can help encourage investment into education outside of Cairo: While CIRA Education and others are already focussing on expanding their education projects in the south of the country and in more rural areas, incentives could help persuade many more to do the same. Allam highlighted the need for affordable land to enable the private sector to increase the number of schools, especially in rural areas, to relieve the pressure on public education services.

Bridging the digital divide can also help bridge geographical divides: Digital access is another focus area of the government and its partners, especially in rural regions where internet connectivity and device access lag far behind urban areas. Boosting digital infrastructure is seen as a cost-effective way to ensure all students have access to the same educational resources.

The country’s development partners are and will continue to play an important role in creating a fairer and more accessible education system: Collaborations with development partners are another essential part of Egypt’s strategy. Organizations like UNICEF, GPE, and GIZ are working with the Ministry of Education to make the education system more equitable — and that included being more gender-responsive. One of many programs offered by our development partners is USAID’s Local Scholarship Program that offers scholarships to students, particularly young women, from underserved communities to study at private Egyptian universities.

The government is also aiming for more gender-inclusive curriculums: Ensuring that curriculums are inclusive and relevant to all students is another major part of the reform agenda. The aim is to provide a balanced education for every child, regardless of gender or socio-economic background. According to the government source, a major priority is providing safe spaces for girls, training teachers on gender awareness, and addressing gender-based violence in schools. Creating a safe, inclusive, and gender-sensitive learning environment is a key priority for the government. This includes training teachers to be more aware of gender issues, developing support systems for girls, and addressing gender-based violence in schools.

There’s also a push for more girls to study STEM subjects: A notable aspect of Egypt’s education reform is the push to promote science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects among girls. Encouraging girls to pursue studies in STEM is seen as a crucial step in closing the gender gap. Initiatives done to address this include the USAID-fundedHigher Education Initiative (HEI) and ProGirls, which work to increase girls’ access to STEM education and leadership opportunities, training and encouraging them to pursue careers in technical fields.

But some of the challenges are much more entrenched — and will take more time to solve: Early marriage and entrenched gender stereotypes remain major obstacles to keeping girls in school. Through community outreach programs and legal reforms, the government is working to challenge these norms. The government source pointed out that despite strict penalties against early marriage, the issue remains deeply tied to cultural traditions in rural areas.

Your top education stories for the week:

  • Egypt once again misses out on making it into the top 10 of the QS Arab RegionRankings for 2025, with the American University of Cairo slipping two places from last year’s ranking to the 13th spot. Cairo University was also demoted a whole nine spots to place 21st in the regional rankings.
  • Boosting financial literacy: Equiti Group and Sigma Capital have opened a newfinancial education center in New Cairo, offering workshops and expert-led sessions to boost financial literacy.
  • The House gave its preliminary approval to establish the National Council forEducation, Research, and Innovation, which will outline and develop education policies. The bill will be put up for final approval from the House later today.
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