Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has announced that former Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani will be nominated by Egypt to the post of UNESCO Director-General for the term 2025 – 2029.
Speaking at a press conference on 5 April, Mr Madbouly said that the decision to nominate Mr Anani was made by the national committee in charge of setting criteria to choose the best candidate. The Cabinet approved Anani’s nomination, he added.
The PM said Anani has made great, precious contributions to science, education and culture at both the national and international levels. He stressed that Anani’s nomination for the UNESCO post reflects the special relations between Egypt and the international organisation. Egypt’s rich cultural, archaeological, intellectual and scholarly heritage encourages the country to promote its contributions to UNESCO, he said.
Mr Madbouly cited Egypt’s launching in 2020 of a flagship programme to support the efforts of African countries to restore stolen cultural property. UNESCO had adopted the resolution “Global Priority Africa” to back African countries demands on this front.
Elections for choosing the new UNESCO Director-General will be held at the Paris-based international organisation in 2025.
Biography of Khaled al-Anani
Minister of Tourism and Antiquities in 22 December 2019 – 13 August 2022
Minister of Antiquities in 23 March 2016 – 21 December 2019
Professor of Egyptology, Tourism Guidance Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management (FTH), Helwan University (HU) from which he graduated in 1992; Faculty member since 1993
Ph.D. in Egyptology, UPV, Montpellier III in 2001
Vice-Dean for Education and Students Affairs, FTH, HU in 2012 – 2013; Head of Tourism Guidance Department, FTH, HU in 2011 – 2012
Visiting Professor, Paul-Valéry University (UPV), Montpellier III seven times during 2006 – 2013
Honorary Member of the Société française d’égyptologie, Paris (2016); Corresponding Member of the German Archaeological Institute, Berlin (2015)
Associate Scientific Expert, Board Member, Member of Scientific Council, and Associate Researcher at French Intstitute of Oriental Archaeology in Cairo (IFAO) in 2002 – 2016
General Supervisor of Egyptian Museum in Cairo in 2015 – 2016; and National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation in 2014 – 2016
Honours: Order of the Rising Sun, Japan (2021); Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (2020); Chevalier de l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France (2015).
Watani International
6 April 2023
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