Okaz newspaper

The Dean of Zagazig University in Egypt stated that the main reason behind the deterioration of the Egyptian education system was the reliance on personal achievements rather than group and institutional work, which relies on perfection in performance and the spirit of group work.

The dean added at a recent international conference that efficient education required a reliance on qualified people who were able to serve the community and manage its public institutions. He added that this was the strategy employed by the 19th century ruler Muhammad Ali when he started building modern Egypt. According to the dean, there must be a change in the methods, structure and building of education in order to develop the ability to do group work once again.

The state of education in the Arab world has reached the point where educators are wishing for the return of the good old days because they were much better than the condition of education today. What interests me in the dean’s argument is the fact that he praised the Egyptian civil service law, which reinstated competition as a means of filling leadership positions in state institutions. This will allow qualified people to be placed in leading positions according to their qualifications. That will ultimately lead to the quick implementation of institutional development programs. Hiring in the Arab world often depends on personal preferences and that is one reason for the misfortune of the Arab managerial system.

If high positions in the public services sector were all filled by qualified candidates, then one can imagine the change that would happen in the public sector and the increase in productivity.

If jobs in general broke free from the Arab administrative heritage, which means handing down jobs to relatives, then just imagine the change that would take place in the civil service and the nation’s development.