Egyptian politician Khaled El-Enany elected new UNESO head
Egyptian politician Khaled El-Enany will take over at the head of UNESCO after being elected on Thursday by a large majority at the general conference of the UN’s culture and education agency held in Samarkand in Uzbekistan.
El-Enany received 172 of 174 votes cast to succeed Audrey Azoulay, a French civil servant and politician of Moroccan descent, who has led the agency since 2017. He takes office on November 15.
El-Enany is an internationally recognized Egyptologist. As Egyptian antiquities minister he has been involved in reforms and major restauration works and museum projects.
UNESCO said he had worked to make Egypt’s heritage visible around the world through exhibitions and special programmes.
El-Enany is UNESCO’s 12th general director-general and the first from an Arab country.
Maria Böhmer, head of Germany’s UNESCO committee welcomed El-Enany’s election. He put people at the focus under the slogan “UNESCO for the People” with the aim of improving lives, overcoming borders and promoting peace and hope for the future, she said.
The organization, with a staff of around 2,000 and a budget of hundreds of millions of dollars, is best known for its World Heritage list, but is also active in promoting international cooperation in education, science, culture and communication in the service of peace and security.
The Paris-based organization currently has 194 member states.
