Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water

About the Project

The Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water project in Egypt was established in 2019 at The American University in Cairo to address the challenges facing Egypt’s agriculture and water sectors. With a budget of $48 million, the project aims to connect academic researchers with public and private sectors to generate impactful policy and applied research, develop state-of-the-art curricula, and offer hundreds of scholarships. The centers also provide training and exchange opportunities to strengthen the skills of faculty, students, and staff, fostering collaboration between U.S. and Egyptian institutions. While the Centers have two primary partners, Cairo University and Alexandria University, the Centers collaborate with several other Egyptian universities including Ain Shams, Aswan, Assiut, Beni Suef, Benha, Suez Canal, and Zagazig universities in Egypt; Utah State, Washington State, and Temple Universities, and the University of California at Davis, Riverside, and Santa Cruz.

Project Objectives

The purpose of The Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water activity is to develop Egypt’s water and agricultural resources for the benefit of its economy and people. Through a well-established program framework, The Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water activity will support Egyptian Public Universities (EPUs) with an improved ability to generate innovative, modern, and competitive solutions to address Egypt’s agriculture and water challenges. The activity will achieve this purpose through the following five results:
 

1. Egyptian Public Universities and water and agriculture institutions have strengthened their capacity to meet the needs of the public and private sectors through two established Centers of Excellence, one at Alexandria University and one at Cairo University, with a governance structure that creates collaboration and accountability among partners and stakeholders, supports linkages between supply and demand for water and agriculture research, policy engagement and skilled graduates, and generates revenue to remain financially stable for decades. 
    
2. Undergraduates, graduates, and professionals in water - and agriculture - related fields have increased access to relevant and high-quality water and agriculture curricula and innovative teaching methods.
    
3. Water and agricultural research capacity in Egypt is elevated, alongside the ability to create policy-relevant, innovative, and market-driven research products, focusing on promoting technology transfer to strengthen the community's resilience. This includes (a) capacity-building training for researchers on how to develop and commercialize their research innovations; (b) the creation of a database for research innovations that are available for commercialization; and (c) matchmaking events with potential investors or partners.
    
4. Students, faculty, and staff have strengthened capacity to master their jobs with the needed state-of-the-art skills and knowledge through scholarships, training, and exchanges to equip the faculty, students, and staff while strengthening the relationship between U.S. and Egyptian universities.
    
5. A sustainable long-term model for the Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water emerging from a global network of public and private sector entities, that forms alliances with stakeholders by instilling persistence, open dialogue, and disseminating program results to raise public awareness and engagement. 
    

The Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water will serve the needs of the Egyptian economy, including industry while supporting the government in facing water and food challenges, developing policy, and preparing the next generation of market-relevant graduates and entrepreneurs. Through U.S. universities and public and private sector partnerships, the Centers of Excellence for Agriculture and Water will reform curricula, advance capacity development, commercialize research, bolster technology transfer, and design and disseminate relevant, high-quality applied research to combat Egypt’s multi-sectoral challenges and achieve Egypt’s Vision 2030 goals. The activity results will be achieved while focusing on the overarching goal of increasing access for women, persons with disabilities, and highly skilled and talented students.