The Minister of Communications attends the closing ceremony of the first session of the Capacity Building Initiative for Universities in the field of Artificial Intelligence
Dr. Amr Talaat, the Minister of Communications and Information Technology, attended the closing ceremony of the first session of the Capacity Building Initiative for Universities in the field of Artificial Intelligence at the Digital Egypt Innovation Center in Giza. This initiative was organized in collaboration between the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and Dell Technologies in Egypt. During this initiative, 500 students from five universities, including Cairo University, Ain Shams University, the American University in Cairo, the German University in Cairo, and the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport, were trained in the field of Artificial Intelligence.
The closing ceremony of the first session of the Capacity Building Initiative for Universities in Artificial Intelligence included a hackathon focused on improving water efficiency in Egypt using artificial intelligence. Sixty students from ten teams representing the participating universities in the first session of the initiative took part in this hackathon.
In his speech, Dr. Amr Talaat emphasized the significance of the "Capacity Building Initiative for Universities in Artificial Intelligence," highlighting that it is one of the key fields within communications and information technology. He pointed out that Egypt has made significant progress, ranking 7th globally in the Artificial Intelligence Index by Tortwaz Media, a specialized AI company. Egypt has also advanced in the index related to AI-related skills, underscoring the government's efforts to promote AI usage. A National Artificial Intelligence Council has been established, and a national AI strategy has been formulated.
Dr. Amr Talaat added that this initiative represents constructive collaboration among various stakeholders, including the government, academia, private sector, and innovative youth. He stressed that success in the field of communications and information technology relies on harnessing technology to address societal challenges across different sectors. He also mentioned that the ministry will continue to launch more training programs in cooperation with major global companies and academic institutions to expand the pool of professionals capable of utilizing various technologies, including artificial intelligence, to serve different sectors of the country. The ministry aims to expand programs targeting students at all levels, encouraging them to pursue careers in communications and information technology.
Dr. Amr Talaat encouraged students to continue learning and acquire more knowledge to keep up with the rapid technological advancements.
Engineer Ghada Labib, the Deputy Minister of Communications and Information Technology for Institutional Development, highlighted that the initiative aims not only to build the capabilities of students but also to include practical applications. The initiative partnered with the Applied Innovation Center to ensure practical application in areas related to resource sustainability. Topics included smart government, smart cities, smart agriculture, and optimal water usage, which were the focus of the competition held at the conclusion of the first session of the initiative.
Dr. Ahmed Tantawi, the supervisor of the Applied Innovation Center, emphasized the importance of connecting knowledge to practical application in innovative projects with a positive impact on society. He praised the projects implemented by the participating students in the first session of the initiative.
Majed Mahmoud, Deputy President and General Manager of Centers of Excellence at Dell Technologies, highlighted the strategic importance of the initiative due to the rapid growth and impact of artificial intelligence across all sectors. He emphasized the importance of providing expertise in this field to help youth secure outstanding job opportunities and contribute positively to the communications and information technology sector. Dell Technologies worked closely with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the universities to prioritize specific topics within the initiative.
Dr. Amr Talaat honored the three winning teams of the hackathon during the closing ceremony. The first place was awarded to the MET team from the German University in Cairo for their project aimed at helping families optimize water consumption. The second place went to the Smarking team from the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport for their project on detecting plant water consumption. The third place was awarded to the IET team from the German University in Cairo, which developed an application for water consumption prediction in Toshka for agricultural purposes.
It's worth noting that five cooperation agreements were signed in December 2021 between the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Dell Technologies in Egypt, and five universities, including Cairo University, Ain Shams University, the American University in Cairo, the German University in Cairo, and the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport, to build AI capabilities at these universities.
The first session of the Capacity Building Initiative for Universities in Artificial Intelligence included various activities such as curriculum development in the fields of data collection, data science, and data engineering, training 35 professors and trainers on these curricula, organizing workshops for trainers and students, teaching these curricula to students, training them, and enabling them to use high-performance computing at the Applied Innovation Center. The students implemented a total of 67 projects during this initiative.
The closing ceremony was attended by several dignitaries and officials from various organizations, including Ahmed Zaher, CEO of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA); Dr. Hossam Osman, Advisor to the Minister of Communications and Information Technology for Technological Innovation and Electronics Industry and Training; Dr. Reem Bahgat, President of Egypt University for Information Science; Dr. Ahmed Khattab, Director of the National Telecommunications Institute; Dr. Ismail Abdel-Ghaffar, President of the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport; and Dr. Yasser Hegazy, President of the German University in Cairo; as well as Dr. Nagwa Badr, Dean of the Faculty of Computers and Information at Ain Shams University.