Morocco Elected to UNESCO Executive Board
Marrakech, The Gulf Observer: Morocco has been elected as a member of the Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) during the 43rd session of its General Conference, held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
According to the Moroccan delegation in Samarkand, the Kingdom secured 146 votes for a four-year mandate, affirming international confidence in Morocco’s active contribution to UNESCO’s mission in education, science, and culture.
The Executive Board, comprising 58 member states, functions under the authority of the General Conference. It reviews UNESCO’s work programs and examines the organization’s budget proposals submitted by the Director-General.
During the same session, Egypt’s Khaled Ahmed El-Enany Ali Ezz was elected as UNESCO’s new Director-General, succeeding Audrey Azoulay. El-Enany received 172 votes out of 174 participating countries, following an overwhelming recommendation by the Executive Board on October 5, which had favored him by a vote of 55 to 2 over his competitor, Firmin Edouard Matoko of Congo-Brazzaville.
Born in 1971, El-Enany holds a doctorate in Egyptology from Paul-Valéry University Montpellier 3 in France and has served there as a visiting professor on several occasions. A distinguished Egyptologist and academic, he has been teaching at Helwan University in Egypt for over three decades.
El-Enany’s extensive professional background bridges the fields of tourism, culture, and heritage management. He has served as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality, Director of the Open Learning Center, and Head of the Department of Tourist Guides at Helwan University.
He also directed both the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (2014–2016) and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo (2015–2016) before being appointed as Minister of Antiquities and later as Minister of Tourism and Antiquities of the Arab Republic of Egypt, serving from 2016 to 2022.
The election of Morocco to UNESCO’s Executive Board and the appointment of Egypt’s Khaled El-Enany as Director-General highlight the growing leadership role of the Arab world within the UN’s educational and cultural agency, reinforcing regional commitment to advancing global cooperation in education, science, and cultural heritage preservation.
