36th IOI 2024 opens in BA

State seeks to foster IT innovation, research to empower future generations

The 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI 2024) has opened at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA).

The event, organised by the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport (AASTMT) in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, runs till September 8 under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi.

Governor of Alexandria Ahmed Khaled, AASTMT head Ismail Abdel Ghaffar, and President of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Ahmed Zaid attended the event, alongside Benjamin Burton, chairman of the IOI.

The AASTMT aims to be a leading science institution in Egypt and the Arab region, driving sustainable development by fostering innovation, research, and entrepreneurship to empower future generations as catalysts for change.

The IOI, hosted in Cairo in 2008, is an annual global competition where exceptional preparatory and secondary students from various countries compete to demonstrate and enhance their algorithmic, problem-solving, and programming skills.

The event is being supported by the UNESCO and the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP).

Furthermore, it facilitated the identification of exceptional Egyptian talents, with numerous outstanding students discovered nationwide from 2003 to 2023. 

Egypt has secured an impressive total of 31 IOI medals, including six silver and 25 bronze.

Addressing the event, the governor of Alexandria said that the political leadership has attached due importance to achieving a competitive economy, relying on benefiting from the outcomes of scientific research.

Governor Khaled said that the IOI aligns with the developments taking place in the world, which has experienced a new phase featured by expansion in the use of communication and information technology applications.

Over the past few years, Egypt has become a strong competitor in the International Olympiad in Informatics, winning numerous bronze and silver medals in global competitions in various countries such as Poland, Mexico, Bulgaria, Canada, and Thailand, he said.

For his part, AASTMT head Ismail Abdel Ghafar said: “We are proud to host this exceptional event, which is a meeting point for creative minds and a place where new solutions to problems are devised.”

He said that the IOI represents a gathering of outstanding youth from around the world in the fields of computer science and information technology. It is the most important and largest event in this field for school students worldwide. This year’s edition includes students from 96 countries, in addition to members of various teams, trainers and volunteers.

The AASTMA president said that the IOI serves as a forum for future prodigies and experts in software and information technology.

Abdel Ghafar voiced his appreciation to President Sisi for his sponsorship of this global competition as well as his directives to support creativity and innovation.