The program is designed to translate Western Australia’s mining expertise into practical support for Egypt through training, applied research, policy development and industry engagement. 

His Excellency Karim Badawi, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and the first cohort of MRMIA professionals were welcomed to Murdoch University with a traditional smoking ceremony by Olman Walley.  

Pro Vice Chancellor College of Law, Arts and Social Sciences Professor Deborah Gare said the program featured four pillars: critical minerals opportunity assessment; regulatory and governance reform; sustainable operations and social licence; and mining sector growth and investment readiness.  

“We are immensely proud to host our first cohort of MRMIA professionals on our campus,” she said.  

“This collaboration reflects the best of international education; shared challenges, mutual learning, applied expertise, and long-term institutional partnership. 

“Western Australia’s mining sector provides a powerful living classroom, and Murdoch University’s role is to help translate that experience into practical learning that supports Egypt’s priorities for its own resources sector.” 

Professor Gare said it was expected that the program would develop into a broader partnership with stronger professional networks, future research collaborations, training opportunities, degree pathways and engagement through the Egypt Mining Forum. 

Academic lead Dr Olabisi Imonitie said the program was not designed in isolation – rather co-created with MRMIA and the Western Australian Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration, ensuring that the learning was grounded in Egypt’s priorities while drawing on local experience and expertise. 

“This program is part of our commitment to supporting Minister Badawi’s vision for the transformation of Egypt’s mining sector. Seeing that commitment come to life here at Murdoch, with the Minister, his delegation, and our first cohort was a genuinely proud moment for our team,” she said.  

The real value of international capacity development is not about transferring one country’s model to another. It is about creating the conditions for people to learn from each other, interrogate what works, and translate that knowledge into solutions that respond to their own context. 

“Ultimately, the measure of success will not simply be what participants learn during the program, but what becomes possible because of the relationships, capability and institutional connections built through it." 

The launch event, on Thursday, 3 September, was attended by senior Egyptian officials, representatives of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Australian Embassy in Egypt, highlighting the importance of the broader Australia-Egypt relationship.