The Egyptian Refining Company (ERC) has granted 22 students full scholarships to study at the Arab Academy for Science and Technology, Ain Shams University, Zewail University, Nile University and the American University in Cairo (AUC)
Cairo - November 9, 2017. The Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), Qalaa Holdings’ US$ 3.7 billion greenfield refinery in the Greater Cairo Area of Mostorod, announced today the recipients of its 2nd annual round of scholarships granted through the “Mostakbaly” Scholarship program, a comprehensive initiative that aims to sponsor opportunities for educational enhancement amongst students in its surrounding community of Khosos, Mostorod, Matareyah and East Shubra El Kheima by granting them access to higher education at public, private and international universities in Egypt.
Expanding on the 2016 program in which 6 students were given scholarships to study at AUC and the Arab Academy for Science and Technology, ERC is giving additional scholarships to 22 students who will attend 5 different universities; The Arab Academy, Zewail University, Nile University, and AUC as well distinguished faculties such as medicine and engineering at Ain Shams University.
"We believe that developing and modernizing our education system and providing access to quality education whether it’s in Egypt or abroad is key if we want to progress to the next level as a nation," said Dr. Ahmed Heikal, ERC Chairman and Qalaa Chairman and Founder. "This is why we are determined to do our part to give students opportunities to develop their talents and explore new fields that they may not have otherwise had access to.”
He added that Qalaa Holdings aims to tackle the issue of education from all angles with a holistic approach that includes providing graduate and undergraduate scholarships and training for students and teachers, refurbishing infrastructure at public schools in the community, and providing technical and vocational training through Qalaa’s subsidiaries.
Heikal also explained that Mostakbaly has been a highly successful initiative that was the outcome of a thorough needs assessment that was undertaken in cooperation with the local community in Mostorod. Educational opportunities and infrastructure were found to be severely lacking and thus ERC decided to launch Mostakbaly.
In addition to student scholarships Mostakbaly provides scholarships for teachers from local public schools to receive training in elementary education at the American University in Cairo (AUC) to augment their professional teaching and creative skills. Last year 30 teachers were selected to participate in AUC’s “Teaching Early Learners” (CELE) program, a professional educator diploma designed specifically for teaching young children in the classroom, at home and within the community. CELE includes six training modules over the course of one year at AUC’s Graduate School of Education. Teachers who complete the program will be able to contribute positively to their schools by introducing other teachers in their community to new teaching methods and administrative skills. Teachers are selected for the program based on their community service record and their ability to share and transfer their knowledge and experience to others.
Mostakbaly also offers outstanding scholars the opportunity to pursue post-graduate studies at Universities abroad provided they return to Egypt after the completion of their studies to serve as role models for others in their community. Mostakbaly’s first post-graduate scholarship which was awarded to a student who is studying Health Economics at the University of Sheffield in the UK was announced in June 2017 as part of the Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation’s (QHSF) 11th annual awards ceremony.
Dr. Mohamed Saad, ERC Managing Director said, “I’m extremely proud of the results that Mostakbaly has achieved thus far. Instrumental to that success was the successful partnership that we have forged between the three counterparties of the golden triange represented by the private sector (ERC), the public sector (Ministry of Education, Cairo Governorate) and local civil society organizations.”
ERC has been active on all sides of the educational spectrum with programs in place for school refurbishments, teacher capacity building and support to students. Thus far they have upgraded facilities in a total of 4 schools and conducted partial maintenance on 37 additional schools and two local training centers benefiting a total of 180,000 students and 3,000 teachers. A needs assessment exercise was also conducted to identify training objectives for teachers resulting in the administering of 28 training sessions for 647 teachers from local schools. Support for students has been given through the provision of school supplies, bags and uniforms for 3,204 needy students, and the successful completion of the “Naddarty” (Eye Glasses) program which conducted vision tests and subsequently provided 3,633 students with eye glasses. 2,400 students also participated in 8 environmental awareness campaigns under the slogan "Think and Save", which aims to develop student awareness of cleanliness and the responsible consumption of water and electricity.
The Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation (QHSF), the largest private sector scholarship program in Egypt, has been working for more than 11 years to support talented Egyptian students who are interested in pursuing graduate studies abroad at some of the world’s most prestigious universities provided that they return to Egypt and work after the completion of their studies. QHSF has thus far provided 163 scholarships.
As an important import substitution project delivering diesel and other high-value products to the EGPC at the heart of the consumption market in Greater Cairo, ERC is viewed as strategically important to Egypt’s energy security. ERC is now more than 95% complete and is expected to begin first production in the second quarter of 2018 with a production capacity of 4.2 million tons per annum.
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The Egyptian Refining Company is building a state-of-the-art US$ 3.7 billion greenfield oil refinery in the Greater Cairo Area, which will produce over 4.2 million tons of refined products per annum, including over 3 million tons of jet fuel and EURO V diesel, the cleanest fuel of its type in the world. ERC’s production will be sold to the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) under a 25-year offtake agreement at international prices.
Qalaa Holdings (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Stock Exchange) is an African leader in infrastructure and industry. Formerly known as Citadel Capital, Qalaa Holdings controls subsidiaries in core industries including Energy, Cement, Transportation & Logistics, and Mining. To learn more, please visit qalaaholdings.com.
For more information, please contact:
Ms. Ghada Hammouda
CMO & Head of Corporate Communications
Qalaa Holdings (S.A.E.)
Tel: +20 2 2791-4439
Fax: +20 22 791-4448
Mobile: +20 106 662-0002