This article discuss the uses and teaching of the Swahili language in Egypt. Today, the North African country considers Swahili language to be one of the most important languages in Africa; which is used as a lingua franca even by fellow Nile River countries. There is a relatively long history of Swahili language teaching; beginning in 1967 with the establishment of the Department of African Languages, within the Faculty of Languages and Translation at the Al-Azhar University. Since then, many students have learned Swahili and become either Swahili teachers; editors in Egyptian Radio for East African countries; or Swahili language translators at Al-Azhar centres. The establishment of other departments at three other universities - namely, Ain Shams University, Cairo University, and most recently Aswan University - has helped to grow and develop Swahili language teaching. Egypt continues to take steps to advance the teaching and use of Swahili language with the aim of strengthening relations between it and several East and Central African countries, where it remains the main language of communication.

Kuanzia mwaka 1964 hadi 1993, idara ya Kiswahili katika Shirika la Uchapishaji wa Lugha za Kigeni ilitafsiri na kuchapisha jumla ya vitabu 258 vya Kichina kwenda Kiswahili huku wasomi wa Kiswahili walitafsiri vitabu 26 vya Kiswahili kwa Kichina. Kwa kulinganisha idadi na maudhui ya vitabu hivyo katika enzi ya mapinduzi na ya mageuzi, makala hii inadhihirisha utegemezi wa tafsiri kwa sera ya serikali na mazingira ya jamii. Kwa hivyo, changamoto za kitaaluma na za kiuchumi zilizopo katika kutafsiri vitabu kwenda au kutoka Kiswahili nchini China zinakabili serikali, wachapishaji, waandishi, watafsiri na wasomaji kwa pamoja. / Between 1964 and 1993, the Kiswahili department of the Foreign Languages Press of China translated and published 258 books from Chinese into Swahili while 26 books were translated from Swahili into Chinese. This article highlights the dependency of translation processes on government policies as well as societal circumstances by comparing the number of books and their content during the periods of revolution and reform. Thus, the academic as well as economic challenges in the context of the translation of books from and into Kiswahili have to be addressed by the government, the publishers, authors, translators as well as readers.