The Library of Congress has been working closely with the National Library and Archives of Egypt (NLAE) on the emergency conservation of the books rescued during the tragic fire at the Institut d’Egypte last December.
Egypt’s damaged books
The Library of Congress has been working closely with the National Library and Archives of Egypt (NLAE) on the emergency conservation of the books rescued during the tragic fire at the Institut d’Egypte last December.
A Library of Congress specialist on conservation and preservation techniques, Alan Haley, was in Cairo last month to work with 15 Egyptian NLEA staff members on the conservationeffort. Mr Haley applauded the work performed by NLAE staff. “The NLAE staff has so much to be proud of concerning their heroic and effective efforts to stabilise the Institut’s collection, which was so severely impacted by fire and water. I doubt that any emergency response team with more experience could have done a better job,” Mr Haley said. “It was a true honour to work with the fine people of the NLAE. Their warmth, generosity, and willingness to share their experiences in a group setting made the sessions productive and memorable.”
Mr Haley’s visit was a follow-up to the initial support given to NLAE from the US Agency for International Development and the American Center for Research in Egypt in the wake of the fire at the Insitut d’Egypte. In January, USAID provided funding for critical equipment and supplies at the request of the NLAE, which oversaw rescue and salvation operations. During the training, Mr. Haley, whose work at the institut was supported by the Library of Congress, worked with senior and junior members of NLAE staff to help boost their conservation skills
and abilities to work with damaged library materials.The Institut d’Egypte was founded by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 and became a centre for research and scholarship about Egypt, producing the well-known Description de l’Egypt.” It was recognised as the oldest functioning academy of sciences and arts outside Europe. The collection consists of rare books and manuscripts, some of which date back to the 14th century.
Founded in 1800, the Library of Congress is the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. It seeks to spark imagination and creativity and to further human understanding and wisdom by providing access to knowledge through its vast multi-lingual collections and programmes.
Swedish donation
As the Cairo International Health Exhibition MEDICONEX took place in Cairo earlier this month, and on the occasion of the presence of its President for Middle East and Africa in Cairo, the Swedish company Bactiguard made an in kind donation to Egypt. The donation was officially handed to the Egyptian Ministry of Health.
Five leading Swedish healthcare companies took part in the 5th edition of MEDICONEX, the major event in Egypt and North Africa for medical education and technology, knowledge sharing, networking as well as business opportunities. Astra Zeneca Egypt for biopharmaceutical products, Bactiguard for medical and antimicrobial solutions, Gamma Knife Center for radio surgery, Getinge for infection control and contamination prevention, and RTI Electronics for passive electronic components, all took part.
Intellectual Property Rights
The US Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Trade Facilitation Project (TFP) incooperation with the Entrepreneurs Business Forum (EBF) focused on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in a workshop that took place earlier this month at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. It was one of a series of IPR workshops that USAID is undertaking in an attempt to support small and medium enterprises in Egypt grow and develop the economy. Workshop speakers included business and intellectual property experts from Egypt and the United States.
“One of the best and fastest ways a small company can protect itself from unfair business practice is to register their intellectual property”, said Ms Jaleen Moroney, Deputy Chief of Party, Trade Facilitation Project.
Supporting Egypt’s Intellectual Property Rights has been a priority for the Government of Egypt and a leading item in Egypt’s international trade and investment agreements, leading to the Law (82) of 2002.
Mohamed Hegazy, Director of Intellectual Property for Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) said that: “Through registration of new innovations, companies can further develop their businesses and turn their ideas into assets and stocks, which can also be used for bank loans.”
Sing Egyptian Women
“Sing Egyptian Women,” a women’s empowerment programme sponsored by the US Embassy in Cairo, ShareTheMic, and Nile Promotions celebrated its grand finale with Grammy-nominated American singer Maiysha on the rooftop of the Fairmont Nile Towers Hotel on Thursday, April 5, 2012, and announced Nathalie Alain of Alexandria as the winner.
“The ‘Sing Egyptian Women’ program seeks to provide talented Egyptian women with the opportunity to represent their country on the world stage,” said US Embassy Public Affairs Counselor Patricia Kabra.
Over the past few months, thousands of Egyptians voted in support of the talented Egyptian women participating in the programme. The participants took part in workshops on leadership, marketing, and music, and performed in Cairo and other towns across Egypt. The will travel to New York City and record in a professional recording studio, representing the talent, views, and determination of Egyptian women.
The “Sing Egyptian Women” contest took place in three stages. From November 2011 through January 2012, nearly one hundred Egyptian women uploaded videos of their singing to the U.S. Embassy Facebook page. On January 16, the contest’s judges, including Egyptian opera singer Nevine Allouba, decided which 40 contestants would proceed to the next stage of the program. From January through April, the Egyptian people viewed the “Sing Egyptian Women” participants’ videos nearly half a million times and cast almost a hundred thousand votes for their favourites.
The partner organisations for the programme are the Egyptian-American cultural development organisation Nile Promotions, and ShareTheMic, whose mission is to harness the power of music to bring different cultures together.
German Weeks 2012
The German Embassy in Egypt has organised the “German Weeks 2012” event from 17 April to 5 May, with the aim of fostering closer German-Egyptian partnership,
The “German Weeks 2012” offer a colourful programme with a large variety of more than 30 events, ranging from art and culture, science and language to society and business, thus underlining the rich variety of the bilateral relationship.
Numerous partners and institutions are involved, participate in and support this project.
A concert of the “Digi-Ensemble” highlighted the launching event. The German artist “Gentleman” brought the flair of the music of the Carribean to Cairo and Alexandria.
Many German institutions and companies are presenting their work during Open Days. The KFW offered a trip to the wind farm in Zafarana and a round-table discussion on renewable energy in Egypt and in the region. Those who wish to see how German cars are made could get a glimpse at Mercedes and BMW.
Empowering domestic workers
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women has been partnering in a project by al-Shehab Institution for Comprehensive Development that seeks to alleviate the plight of female domestic workers in Egypt.
The project aims at improving socio-economic conditions for domestic workers through empowering them and facilitating their reach to social services in the community. It also seeks to to enhance the participation of the relevant stakeholders, the government and civil society, to create protective policies for female domestic workers on the national level.
The project provides legal aid and psychological support for domestic workers in Ezbet al-Haggana, east of Cairo and in a number of marginalised communities in Helwan, south of Cairo.
WATANI International
28 April 2012