The Egyptian Army has broken into the world of private schools within his continuing efforts to expand its investments, which observers say they are crowding out the private sector companies, and hampering the investment climate in Egypt, according to Al-Jazeera Mubasher.
Badr International Schools have announced that they were founded by the “Egyptian Armed Forces” in order to become the best international school … and provide the highest quality of education, according to the schools’ official website. “The main objective behind Badr International School’s establishment … is a goal that Egyptian Armed Forces (The Military Forces of Egypt) have had for years now and is finally being implemented successfully by the primary decision maker and supervisor himself, Egypt’s Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi,” said the BIS website.
According to the schools, which announced that they offer British and American curricula, they “provide a unique opportunity as they represent a community of leaders,” referring to their belonging to the Egyptian Army.
The schools’ official website and their Facebook page show senior officers of the Egyptian army attending the school events.
The Egyptian army’s involvement in investing in private schools comes within the increased efforts in recent years to expand its trade and investment activity.
The Egyptian Army took power directly after its military coup against President Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s first democratically elected president in July 2013, which was carried out by Defense Minister at the time Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who has turned to president since June 2014.
Since then, Sisi has allowed the Egyptian army to broadly involve in the economic and investment activity, in a way experts say it is hampering Egyptian investment and hurting private companies.
The Egyptian Army possesses projects worth billions of dollars in a variety of sectors, valued by experts at more than 40 percent of the size of the Egyptian economy, including plants for food, medicine, home appliances, tourism companies and hotels as well as heavy industry and other activities.
The army enjoys preferential treatment, as its companies are exempted from payment of taxes while its recruits work for almost no wages in the military-run civilian factories. This allows the army to offer goods and services at low prices that other companies cannot compete, which harms the investment climate, according to experts.
“We proudly follow the Egyptian Armed Force’s code of conduct in order to pave the smoothest educational ways for each of our students,” said the Badr International Schools’ site on the internet.
The Third Army first international language school in Suez cost 90 million Egyptian pounds, according to Suez-Online.
Third Army Field Commander Attends Badr International School Ceremony
The Egyptian Third Army Commander has attended a ceremony of the Badr International Schools. “A group of ladies and gentlemen, headed by Major General, Mohamed Abdellah, the field commander of the Egyptian Third Army, a number of commanders of the third army branches, Dr. Maher Mesbah, the Suez University rector, and a group of media men and journalists have attended the Badr International Schools (BIS) ceremony: (INTERNATIONAL DAY CELEBRATION), reported Shahed Suez blogspot..
At the end of the BIS wonderful ceremony, Major General Mohamed Abdellah cut the celebration cake and shook hands with the guests, the students, and parents, the source said.
