Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi insisted on Saturday that he would not seek another term when his current mandate ends in 2030, as he outlined a plan to prepare a new generation of leaders to succeed him.
"My term in office ends in 2030 and this is a given and will not change," Mr El Sisi told a military ceremony marking the graduation of new cadets. "But I will not abandon the state of Egypt, which is rich with its sons who can shoulder the responsibility after me."
He said the military academy would invite up to 300 candidates with doctorates from Egyptian or foreign universities to attend a 30-month course to teach them "what is a nation and how to protect it".
The armed forces are to sponsor the course. Those who finish will be the next generation of the country's leaders, he said.
"The academy will prepare people to know what a nation is and how to protect it ... Egypt is not sterile. It's capable of producing a leader better than me. I need the Egyptian people to support this idea," he added.
He said applicants must be between the ages of 40 and 50 and will be interviewed and vetted before they are enrolled. He did not say whether civilians and military candidates can apply, leaving the door open for another army officer like him to seek election in 2030.
By the time Mr El Sisi's current term ends in 2030, he would have served as president for 16 years. He owes his current term in office to constitutional amendments in 2019, which were adopted in a national referendum.
Before the changes were adopted, the constitution stipulated that no president could serve more than two four-year terms. The amendments kept the two-term cap, but extended the term to six years.
In a clause added for Mr El Sisi's benefit, the amendments considered the first of his two terms in office to have begun in 2018, not 2014 when he was first elected.
Egypt's constitution is a relatively progressive document adopted in a nationwide referendum in 2014, three years after Hosni Mubarak was removed from power in an uprising.
Many Egyptians regard Mr El Sisi as a safe pair of hands at a time when the Middle East is embroiled in conflict, with wars in Gaza, Egypt's neighbour to the east, Sudan, to the south, and political instability in Libya, on the western border.
The fallout from the Iran war, including Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, has affected Egypt's economy, increasing its already high energy import bills and hitting Suez Canal revenue.