Thabet’s remarks came on Sunday during a discussion session by the National Dialogue's Committee on Public Freedoms and Human Rights on encouraging interaction between the Egyptian academic community and its counterparts abroad, including the requirements for freedom of academic research.
AI degrades research skills and diminishes human contributions, negatively impacting the overall culture, Thabet continued.
The technology lacks objectivity, only presenting information from a one-sided perspective. Moreover, the information it does present is general and unspecific, the professor added.
“We [Egypt] must inaugurate our own [AI] application and technologies,” she said, affirming that “we have the capabilities to do so.”
International cooperation
It is necessary for Egypt to adopt cooperative international education given today’s global integration, especially as most issues transcend state borders, Thabet said.
Access to data and information must be allowed and facilitated on an organizational level, she asserted, lamenting that most research ends up only on shelves.
Later in the session, Vice President of the National Council for Human Rights Mahmoud Karam said that scientific research is both essential for development and a cornerstone for universities' international classification. Therefore, bridges should be built to exchange knowledge across borders.
Furthermore, Egypt must encourage scientific cooperation with universities abroad in the fields of AI, robotics, laser research and the green economy, the vice president affirmed.
It is also important to bolster the relationship between scientific research, industrial projects and the private sector to encourage industrial and technological development, Karam added.
Professors and lecturers must be allowed sabbatical leave while researchers should be assisted in obtaining entry visas to European countries, he continued.
Furthermore, the vice president asserted that it is crucial to support the work of cultural and educational missions in embassies across the world as they are a conduit for expertise and scientific skills.
Also, the facilitation of patent registration will significantly improve researcher conditions, he added.
Finally, there must be mechanisms put in place to address Egypt's problem of brain drain – the loss of human capital in Egypt to opportunities abroad – and to maintain a connection between the travelling researcher and his home university, he concluded.
Academic freedoms
In her speech, Thabet also expressed happiness that the dialogue is discussing the importance of issuing the Freedom of Information Act.
Former Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Moetaz Khorshid seconded Thabet's statement, asserting that the right to education cannot be fully enjoyed without academic freedom as stipulated in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Hence, the independence of universities is necessary for fostering intellectual creativity and innovation, the former minister said.
Mustafa Kamel Al-Sayed, assistant rapporteur for the political axis of the National Dialogue, said that the demand for academic freedoms is in line with Egypt's constitution.
Additionally, he also called for the independence of universities by allowing them to elect their own deans and presidents. Furthermore, universities must be free to organize their own research and scientific activities.
On his side, Mohamed Farhat, a member of the National Dialogue’s Board of Trustees, said that discussing the law of interaction between Egyptian academic universities and their counterparts abroad as well as the requirements of freedom of scientific research is very important.
However, Assistant Rapporteur of the Human Rights and Public Freedoms Committee Ahmed Ragheb declared that the challenges facing academic freedom do not stem from executive institutions but rather result from the cultural mentality of the people in the field.
Moreover, Ragheb added that the Egyptian constitution provides freedom of academic research for professors as well as students.
Short link: