New UNESCO Director-General to be elected in Samarkand

Samarkand is preparing to host the 43rd session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) General Conference. From October 30 to November 13, the UNESCO General Conference will be held outside Paris for the first time in 40 years — and for the first time, in Uzbekistan.

As part of this event, on November 6, member states of the organization will elect a new candidate for the position of UNESCO Director-General. After being elected by the General Conference, the new Director-General will assume office in mid-November.

Currently, Audrey Azoulay serves as the Director-General of UNESCO. She assumed the position in 2017 and was re-elected for a second term in 2021. Azoulay, a former Minister of Culture of France, has extensive experience in broadcasting, cinema, and cultural heritage protection. Under her leadership, UNESCO has focused on major initiatives, including the ’’Revive the spirit of Mosul’’ project, promoting quality education for girls, and addressing the ethics of artificial intelligence.

On October 6 this year, the Executive Board of UNESCO nominated Egyptian candidate Khaled El-Enany for the position of Director-General. During the board session held in Paris, El-Enany secured a decisive victory, winning 55 out of 58 votes.

His only rival, 69-year-old Firmin Edouard Matoko from the Republic of the Congo, received two votes, while the United States abstained.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi congratulated El-Enany on what he called a ’’great victory,’’ describing the election as ’’a historic achievement added to Egypt’s diplomatic and cultural legacy, as well as to the accomplishments of Arab and African nations.’’ He added that this success reflects Egypt’s civilizational stature and expressed confidence that El-Enany would strengthen cultural dialogue and safeguard global heritage.

El-Enany’s candidacy will be put to a vote among all UNESCO member states during the organization’s General Conference in Samarkand. If elected, he will officially assume the post in mid-November, succeeding Audrey Azoulay. His term of office will run until 2029. With this election, El-Enany would become UNESCO’s 12th Director-General, the first Arab and the second African to hold the position in the organization’s 80-year history.

Khaled Ahmed El-Enany was born in 1971. He holds a PhD in Egyptology from Paul-Valéry University of Montpellier (France). He served as Director of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (2014–2016) and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo (2015–2016). From 2016 to 2022, he held the positions of Minister of Antiquities and later Minister of Tourism and Antiquities of the Arab Republic of Egypt.

El-Enany is a member of several international academic societies. In November 2024, he was appointed Special Envoy for Cultural Tourism by the World Tourism Organization and recently became a patron of the African World Heritage Fund. Khaled Ahmed El-Enany speaks Arabic, French, and English.