Egypt’s Sisi Announces 30-Month Military Academy Training for 1,000 PhD Holders to Prepare Future Leaders; Only Graduates Will Be Eligible to Contest Elections

*CAIRO:* Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has unveiled a plan to prepare future political and administrative leaders through a 30-month training programme at the country’s military academy for up to 1,000 PhD holders. The programme is intended to prepare participants for key state positions, including the presidency, ministerial portfolios, governorships and parliament.

Speaking at a military academy graduation ceremony on Saturday, Sisi said his presidential term would end in 2030 and reiterated that he would not amend the Constitution to extend his tenure. He stressed the need to prepare men and women capable of assuming responsibility for running the state and managing national affairs.

Under the proposed programme, candidates holding PhD degrees from reputable universities in Egypt and abroad would be selected for 30 months of training at the military academy. They would receive instruction on the state system, governance, national resources and their protection, as well as the responsibilities associated with senior public offices.

Sisi said the programme would give Egyptian citizens an opportunity to elect their representatives from among its graduates. However, he did not specify how the candidates would enter the electoral process or be nominated for political and government positions. No confirmed details indicate that completing the military academy programme would become a legal requirement for contesting elections or that other candidates would be barred from running.

The Egyptian president said a committee would be established under the supervision of the speaker of parliament to oversee the programme. The committee would include intellectuals, politicians and senior officials associated with the education and justice sectors. It would establish selection criteria for candidates and prepare draft legislation governing the initiative.

The plan places the military academy at the centre of efforts to develop Egypt’s future political and administrative leadership. The Egyptian armed forces have a significant role extending beyond national defence into the economy, development projects and civilian affairs. Sisi himself is a former army general, and the military’s economic and administrative influence has remained a prominent feature of his rule.

Sisi became president in 2014, a year after leading the military ouster of Mohamed Morsi following mass protests against his government. Morsi was Egypt’s first democratically elected president. Constitutional amendments approved in 2019 extended the presidential term from four to six years and allowed Sisi to seek a third term. Following his re-election in December 2023, his current term is scheduled to end in 2030.