Dr. Manal Abdel Samad Najd, the caretaker Minister of Information, took part in a virtual roundtable discussion on Sunday on the extent to which education is prepared for the future and the possibility of imagining the future of the partnership of universities and building neighborhoods, which was organized by the Forum for the Development of Corporations’ “Talents of Endearment Career Labs” Program.

Dr. Amro Ezzat Salameh, Secretary-General of the Association of Arab Universities, and Othman Sultan, the founding CEO of Du and Mobinil (Orange Egypt), participated in the webinar, which was moderated by Dr. Abed Beidas, Chairman of the Group’s Board of Directors and CEO of the Forum for the Development of Corporate Identity.

“The rapid evolution of higher education and the need of matching students’ future and goals with technology innovations,” Abdel Samad said during the roundtable discussion.

She touched on ways “to enhance the future outlook of students’ professions, their businesses and their communities,” and considered that the COVID-19 pandemic “turned some challenges into opportunities, as it provided a chance to shift to digital education, and contributed to accelerating the introduction of technology in education and the adoption of virtual education, which has become modern and advanced.”

Speakers at the roundtable also indicated that “e-learning has existed since the beginning of this century, but it was rejected by some educators and legislators, while the pandemic pushed everyone towards e-learning – to accept it and adapt to it.”

They also made an agreement that “more needs to be done in terms of corporate sponsorship and relevant research funding of value to local businesses in order to advance education,” arguing that “educational institutions have very little or no chance of surviving the post-Covid-19 era without corporate sponsorship and relevant research funding of value to local businesses.”

The webinar came to a close with a presentation titled “Talents of Endearment,” which discussed how to create an instant and affordable solution that connects students from around the world with companies and professionals in 33 electronic days to collaborate on creating wonderful opportunities for all and participating in building the future of their dreams.