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EGYPT TODAY 11 NOVEMBER 2021 - EGYPT'S MINISTER OF TOURISM & ANTIQUITIES INSPECTS DEVELOPMENT WORKS IN LUXOR
CAIRO – 11 November 2021: Egypt’s Minister of Tourism & Antiquities Khaled el-Enani said that the ministry is providing Luxor Governorate with immense support to hold a grand celebration for the world to see it in its new look.
This event comes in celebration of the completion of Luxor's significant restoration projects, including a project to reveal the path of major processions in
ancient
Egypt, known as the "Rams Road".
During his current visit to Luxor to follow up on the preparations for the grand celebration to promote tourism in Luxor, Minister Enani and Governor of Luxor Mustafa Elham, inspected the ongoing development work in the streets and squares surrounding Luxor and Karnak temples, where the celebration will be held.
Enani began his tour in Luxor by inspecting the areas surrounding Luxor Temple and the Corniche Road, where he directed the necessity of raising the efficiency of roads and sidewalks, as well as paying more attention to the trees, palms, and plant basins located along the Corniche Road and various squares.
Furthermore, Enani instructed the completion of painting the fences, lighting poles, and facades of the tourist bazaars located on the road, to complete the civilized appearance of the entire region.
It is worth noting that this celebration aims to shed light on the tourism and archaeological components that characterize Luxor, especially in light of the Egyptian state’s efforts to develop and raise the efficiency of the infrastructure of the governorate, and restore the Hall of Columns in
Karnak Temples and the road for major processions known as “The Rams Road.”
Al-Anani studied Egyptology at the Helwan University with the aim of becoming a tourist guide. He later obtained a MAS and PhD at the Paul Valéry University Montpellier in 2001. He then became a professor of Egyptology at the University of Helwan, Department of Tourist Guides, then in the Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management in 2011. He also teaches the Ancient Egyptian language at several universities around the world, including the University of Palermo, Paul-Valéry-Montpellier University and the Brandenburg University of Technology. In addition, he became a member of several scientific institutions, notably being a corresponding member of the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin, as well as an associate researcher and member of the board of directors of the French Institute of Oriental Archeology (IFAO). In October 2014, he became the 18th director-general of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation (NMEC).
On 23 March 2016, al-Anani became the Minister of Antiquities in the government of Sherif Ismail. During his tenure, he managed to secure funds to build the Grand Egyptian Museum, and renovate other historical buildings such as the Baron Empain Palace, Graeco-Roman Museum and Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue. He also organizes press conferences following archaeological discoveries to promote tourism. In addition, he aims to combat extremism by encouraging the Egyptian population to take a greater interest in the
ancient Egyptian history.
When the government of Mostafa Madbouly was appointed in 2018, he retained his post. The field of Tourism was added to his portfolio during the reshuffle of December 22, 2019, to become the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities.
MINISTRY
OF TOURISM AND ANTIQUITIES
The Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities is the Egyptian government organization which serves to protect and preserve the heritage and ancient history of Egypt. In December 2019 it was merged into the Ministry of Tourism with Khaled al-Anani retaining his function.
It was formed from the Supreme Council of Antiquities in
2011 during the presidency of Hosni Mubarak to deal with the security and theft of Egyptian antiquities.
Grave robbers have been looting ancient Egyptian tombs nearly continuously for well over 4 thousand years. The Ministry of Antiquities works to get the items restored back to Egypt, whenever possible. Over the years, thousands of stolen antiquities have made their way back to Egypt. For instance, in late 2016, the ministry recovered and repatriated two of four Islamic era lamps which had been stolen in 2015. In 2018, a carving in the shape of Osiris which had been hidden in furniture and shipped to Kuwait was repatriated to Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities.
From 2009 to 2014, the ministry worked with the Getty Conservation Institute on the management and conservation of the tomb of
Tutankhamun.
BLUE
SHIELD STATEMENT ON EGYPT 31 JANUARY 2011
The Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on January 25th 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil disobedience, and labour strikes. Millions of protesters from a variety of socio-economic and religious backgrounds demanded the overthrow of the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Unfortunately, the revolution was not without violent clashes between security forces and protesters, with at least 800 people killed and thousands injured. The uprising took place in Cairo,
Alexandria, and in other cities in Egypt.
Following the recent events in Egypt, the Blue Shield expresses its great concern about the safeguarding of the country’s invaluable cultural heritage amid the existing turmoil.
Starting last Friday evening, a number of important museums and sites in Egypt have fallen prey to looters. Thankfully, in certain cases, it has been reported that members of civil society stood to protect museums and heritage sites all over the country. This demonstrates not only the attachment of the local population for their cultural heritage and their determination to protect it, but also the vulnerability of cultural institutions, sites and monuments during times of great conflict.
Guardians
of the archaeological wonders of Ancient Egypt. Renewables
could play a big part in generating zero emission tours,
hence, climate friendly tourism, to bolster income, which in
turn might be used to further the protections of
antiquities, that nobody wants to see looted, rather stolen
items returned to Egypt, as part of the encapsulation of the
Land of the Pharaohs.
BLUE
SHIELD 2ND STATEMENT ON EGYPT 22 DECEMBER 2011
As the altercations in Egypt endure, and following the recent damages suffered by the Institut d'Egypte in Cairo, the Blue Shield expresses its great concern regarding the safeguarding of the country's invaluable cultural heritage amidst the ongoing turmoil, and wishes to recall the importance of the Arab Republic of Egypt as repository of the world's collective memory. The recent events in Cairo have given reason for new alarm. The Blue Shield and the world heritage community bemoan the loss of lives that took place during the events and the damages the disaster has entailed.
The 12-hour fire, which broke out during clashes near the building on 17 December 2011, gravely endangered the manuscripts and other rare documents housed within. Out of a collection of about 200,000 manuscripts, journals and books, which date as far back as the 16th century, many documents – some of them considered very precious on a historical level – had been salvaged and can be restored.
The Institut d'Egypte was established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 and housed, among many other valuable documents, the records of Napoleon's 1798-1801 Egyptian Campaign. Amongst these, an original copy of the 20-volume Description de l'Egypte.
In keeping with its mandate to protect cultural heritage in times of conflict and political crisis, the Blue Shield wishes to support
UNESCO's efforts to raise public awareness on the importance of the protection of heritage in general, and that of the Institut d'Egypte in particular: Irina Bokova urges protection of Cairo's cultural sites after fire at the Institute of Egypt.
The Blue Shield highly commends the courage demonstrated by the Egyptian population, as they braved the flames and collapsing building in order to save books and manuscripts. These acts are in following with previous actions taken during the events that threatened national museums and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, in which the citizens prevented further damage and looting from taking place. We applaud such efforts and encourage the army and fire brigades to support such protection enterprises. In times of conflict such as these, the safeguarding of heritage should be granted the highest priority. The Blue Shield is also grateful to the National Library and Archives for their prompt support and their invaluable first aid to burnt and wet manuscripts and books.
The Blue Shield mission is "to work to protect the world's cultural heritage threatened by armed conflict, natural and human-made disasters". For this reason, it places the expertise and network of its member organisations at the disposal of their Egyptian colleagues to support their work in protecting the country's heritage, in assessing the damage that has occurred, and, whenever possible, for subsequent recovery measures.
The member organisations of the Blue Shield are currently liaising with Egyptian and international colleagues in order to obtain further information on both the situation and on the possible needs and types of help required for future restoration and conservation, so as to mobilise their networks accordingly.
THE BLUE SHIELD
The Blue Shield is the protective emblem of the
1954 Hague Convention which is the basic international treaty formulating rules to protect cultural heritage during armed conflicts. The Blue Shield network consists of organisations dealing with museums, archives, audiovisual supports, libraries, monuments and sites.
The International Committee of the Blue Shield (ICBS), founded in 1996, comprises representatives of the five Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) working in this field:
- The International Council on Archives
- The International Council of Museums
- The International Council on Monuments and Sites
- The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
- The Co-ordinating Council of Audiovisual Archives Associations
National Blue Shield Committees have been founded in a number of countries (18 established and 18 under construction). The Association of National Committees of the Blue Shield (ANCBS), founded in December 2008, will coordinate and strengthen international efforts to protect cultural property at risk of destruction in armed conflicts or natural disasters. The ANCBS has its headquarters in The Hague.
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