Tuesday, October 25, 2011

USAID


AUC doesn't have graffiti. During the student strikes that took place this September, some students wrote on pieces of paper and tapped those pieces of paper to the wall. USAID stickers are, however very abundant on the AUC campus. The American government's version of graffiti?

They are found on tech-equipment (i.e. ID scanners, computers, projectors) and are most noticeable in the library (it has the highest concentration of tech-equipment), but found in classrooms as well.

According to its website, USAID funded 25% of the AUC new campus (where undergrad & graduate classes are vs. the downtown campus, where continuing education classes are).

In describing its education program, USAID makes the distinction between basic and higher education. This distinction is important because AUC caters to a different set of Egyptians than the public universities in Egypt, and certainly a different set of Egyptian than a rural primary school.


USAID has come under fire in Egypt recently. In June, USAID placed advertisements for open grants to civil society organizations in Egyptian newspapers. According to Egyptian law, unregistered (it's very difficult to become registered here) civil society organizations can't receive foreign funding. US Ambassador Anne Patterson recently presented SCAF [Supreme Council of Armed Forces] with of Egyptian civil society organizations that receive US funding.

http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/507011

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