May 2012
Theatre critic resigns from Egyptian ministry of culture committee
Theatre critic Hatem Hafez resigns from the Supreme Council of Culture, saying the culture ministry operates on a 'policy of confusion' and accuses it of trying to restore the Mubarak regime more >
April 2012
'Ministry of Culture Egyptian Ultras' call for mass protest against minister
A group of Ministry of Culture employees calling themselves "Ministry of Culture Egyptian Ultras" released a statement on Tuesday calling on all employees of all cultural sectors to join a massive demonstration by the minister's office on Sunday, 11 April. more >
March 2012
Culture policy group presents proposals to parliamentary committee
A delegation from the National Culture Policy Group (NCPG) presented a summary of Egyptian cultural policy to parliament's committee on culture, tourism and media at the invitation of committee head Mohamed Abdel-Moneim El-Sawy. more >
February 2012
'The Future of Culture' seeks solution to 'identity confusion'
The head of parliament's cultural committee, MP Mohamed El-Sawy opened a three-hour discussion on the cultural development in Egypt on El Sawy Culturewheel's nine-year anniversary. more >
Minister of Culture appoints new head for the Freedom Centre for Creativity
Minister of Culture Shaker Abdel Hamid issued a decree to restructure the Freedom Centre for Creativity in Alexandria under the presidency of Mostafa Abdel Moti, the former head of the Egyptian Academy in Rome. more >
January 2012
Funding art with food
Wednesday Wagbas, a new initiative at the Townhouse Gallery, is aiming to give funding to artists for new projects at a time of increasing uncertainty in the Egyptian visual art scene. more >
The Question of culture in the ongoing struggle
Is one of the consequences of the revolution going to be limited freedom of expression and creativity in Egypt? As the Islamists sideline the liberals, the ball is in the miltary's court? more >
December 2011
First female secretary general of Supreme Council of Culture, Camilla Sobhy
Experienced literature professor Camilia Sobhy, who received a French knighthood for Art and Culture, is to oversee the council's reshuffle. more >
November 2011
Egypt's culture minister quits over Tahrir clashes
Egyptian Minister of Culture Emad Abu Ghazi tendered his resignation on Sunday to protest the handling of ongoing clashes between security forces and protesters in Cairo’s Tahrir Square by the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the SCAF-appointed government. more >
Reviving Revolution: The role of art in an uncertain Egypt
The Revolution Artists Union (RAU) was founded by 21 artists during the 18-day sit-in that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak. The artists declare that they are seeking an “ongoing cultural revolution.” more >
October 2011
Basma El-Husseiny: Big dreams realised, more to come
Over the past eight years, Al-Mawred Al-Thakafy has introduced new dynamics to Egypt’s arts scene; Ahram Online talks to Basma El-Husseiny who has new ideas to revitalise arts and culture in Egypt. more >
Culture's new impresario
There is a desperate need for funding and fresh views in his department, the new head of the Supreme Council for Culture tells Venus Fouad. more >
September 2011
Cultivation and Control: Prospects for 'democracy'
In the first part of the series "Cultivation and Control" Al-Masry Al-Youm examines the historical role of the Culture Ministry in shaping the cultural sphere. more >
June 2011
Egypt to boost cultural ties with Africa
On a parallel note, Egypt's minister of water resources and irrigation, Dr. Hussein Al-Atfy, emphasized that Cairo was opening a new page with all of Africa. Al-Atfy said Egypt wanted to especially achieve integration with its Nile Basin partners, with whom it shares water lifelines, saying that in the spirit of the post-25 January revolution, Egypt would never back away from its African obligations. more >
May 2011
Ezz El-Din Shoukry: A new era of change for Egypt’s cultural landscape
Ezz El-Din Shoukry shares his vision and plans for the transformation of the Supreme Council of Culture in a new era. more >
Censorship continues to force itself on Egypt's cultural scene
Despite an open attitude by the Minister of Culture with regard to censorship, some government officials still bear the old mindset. more >
The budget of the Ministry of Culture to be reduced
Abou-Ghazi declared in a conference held yesterday, 9 May, that the cabinet is considering reducing the budget of the Ministry. The Cultural Development Fund has already lost 83 per cent of its resources, which makes up LE 100 million annually. more >
March 2011
Egypt's minister of culture speaks of hopes and plans for the ministry
Emad Abou-Ghazi's appointment as the new minister of culture comes at a time when long-hidden conflicts are coming to the surface, but he has hopes and plans for fixing the ministry and reaching out to Egypt. more >
The Supreme Council of Culture to gain independence from Ministry of Culture
The proposal for the independence of the Supreme Council of Culture was welcomed by the new Minister of Culture Emad Abou Ghazy, but a decision has not yet been taken. more >
Warm welcome for Abou-Ghazi as culture minister in Sharaf’s cabinet
The choice of minister of culture in Essam Sharaf's new cabinet is popular among intellectuals in Egypt and beyond. more >
Imagining a different Ministry of Culture
Despite a growing presence of independent and non-governmental cultural centers, art spaces, bands and theater troupes, the Egyptian Ministry of Culture remains the main sponsor of cultural production in the country. But its role is contentious, and over the past month, cultural employees of various backgrounds have been meeting regularly to discuss possible reforms of the ministry, at times calling for its abolition. more >
February 2011
Egypt cultural scene gets facelift after revolution
Dr. Gaber Asfour, former Culture Minister who recently submitted his resignation from the cabinet, said that Egypt is about to implement a new cultural strategy that depends on making culture directed by the people and not the regime like what happened before the revolution. more >
Protests in front of the Supreme Council of Culture
Artists and administration personnel from the Supreme Council of Culture gathered in front of their premises at the Opera Grounds in Cairo, on Thursday, 10 February. Not only the protesters demanded Mubarak to step down and the removal of the regime but also they expressed their own grievances related to the Ministry of Culture. more >
February 2010
From neighborhood to museum?
The Ministry of Culture plans to spruce up Gamaliya and to develop it into an open air museum, like its neighbor, el-Muezz Street. "I need your help and support,” Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni told Gamaliya residents during his 7 January visit to the neighborhood, according to the local press. more >
January 2010
Art falls victim to football hooliganism
Egyptians cancel Algerian pavilion at Alexandria Biennale following violent protests. Culture—like football—has always been politicised in the turbulent world of Arab nationalism. more >
December 2009
France returns relic to Egypt, ending standoff
The Egyptian government had cut ties with the Louvre until the French government agreed to release objects it says were stolen more >
November 2009
Zahi Hawass: Vice Minister of Cultur
The President of Egypt has appointed Dr Zahi Hawass to be the Vice Minister of Culture for Egypt. Hawass comments: I saw how happy people were when I got the Louvre to return the tomb paintings of Tetiky, and when I asked for the return of the Nefertiti bust from Berlin. I hope these people continue to support my work to preserve Egypt’s history. more >
October 2009
Antiquities Council cuts ties with Louvre
Egypt this week severed cultural and artistic ties with the Louvre museum in Paris until the French government returns artifacts taken decades ago from a tomb in Luxor. more >
September 2009
Egypt and UNESCO: other reasons behind the defeat
The uproar over the defeat of Egyptian Minister of Culture Farouq Husni in the elections of the UNESCO director-general has not yet subsided. These elections have truly reflected the size of the chasm between the north and the south, one that cannot be concealed by giving some speeches and words or by watching the hugs and kisses among leaders. more >
Unesco Elections: Controversial Egyptian Farouk Hosni set to win
It came as a surprise to no one. The controversial Egyptian Minister of Culture jumped into the lead after votes, for both the first and second rounds of elections for a new Director General of Unesco, were counted. With 22 votes on Thursday and 23 on Friday, Farouk Hosni led eight other candidates including former Austrian foreign secretary and European Commissioner for External Relations, Benita Ferrero-Waldneras and Bulgaria’s Irina Bokova Gueorguierva. more >
June 2009
Egyptian candidate for Unesco job hits back in Jewish book burning row
The Egyptian politician who is favourite to take over at the helm of the United Nations' education body has defended himself against charges of anti-semitism after he called for the burning of Israeli books.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Farouk Hosni, Egypt's minister of culture, said his words had been taken out of context.
more >
May 2009
Egypt's Unesco hopeful in book burning row
Farouk Hosny has been Egypt's top cultural official since 1987. Doubts still surround the prospects for Egypt's candidate to lead Unesco, the UN's cultural arm, despite his public apology for past anti-Israeli remarks. more >
April 2009
Artists' mobility focal point at Cairo symposium
The discussions ranged from social to aesthetic with breakout groups on cultural dialogue, artist as educator, and curatorial practice. more >
Launch of the IV edition of the Euro-Med award for the dialogue between cultures
The Anna Lindh Foundation (ALF) and Fondazione Mediterraneo (FM) have the pleasure to announce the launch of the Fourth Edition of the Euro-Med Award for the Dialogue between Cultures. This edition’s theme is Intercultural Dialogue for Peace and Co-existence. Deadline for nomination is May 31, 2009. more >
February 2009
Controversy surrounds UNESCO’s would-be chief
Controversy continues to follow Egypt’s minister of culture Farouk Hosny as he attempts to build a global consensus for his candidacy as the next chief of the United Nations cultural organization, UNESCO, with Israel and the United States the most outspoken critics of his election. more >
January 2009
Culture minister denies accusations of contacting Israel
Culture Minister Farouk Hosni lashed out against a recent article published in Al Balagh Al Gadid, a weekly independent Egyptian newspaper, accusing him of communicating with Israeli officials asking them to support his nomination for the UNESCO’s Secretary General position. more >
December 2008
Settling scores
It was not an easy week for Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni and the members of his 2009 UNESCO election campaign committee. Hosni was caught up in yet another drive against his nomination for the post of UNESCO director-general and its impact lingers on. more >
Egyptian MPs stop Israeli pilgrimages
Egyptian members of parliament and activists are campaigning to prevent thousands of Israeli Jews from flocking to Egypt every year to visit the grave of a famous rabbi. more >
Long road to UNESCO
When Egypt nominated Minister of Culture, Farouk Hosni, to be UNESCO's next director-general all hell broke loose. His latest battle, as a candidate for UNESCO's director-general, is being fought on an international front. Assem El-Kersh and Nevine El-Aref speak to him about his campaign. more >
November 2008
Cairo independent film festival postponed
Hours before its opening last Friday, the Cairo Independent Film Festival was postponed due to what a Rawabet Theater official said was missing paperwork sealing the approval of the Ministry of Culture. more >
October 2008
ISESSCO holds training session in Alexandria on Cultural Diversity
The session, which will be held as part of the celebration of Alexandria as 2008 Islamic Culture Capital, is aimed at highlighting the role of dialogue among civilizations and cultures as a central component of cultural products, artefacts and communicational content. more >
Dancing With controversy
Modern dance is moving to center stage, despite those who condemn it as a sin. more >
Farouk Hosni: Candidate for UNESCO Director General
Farouk Hosni, an abstract artist and Egyptian Minister of Culture, has been nominated by his government to be the next Director General of UNESCO, and is considered to be a leading candidate. more >
September 2008
Completion of establishing Rosetta museum at a cost of L.E. 4 million
The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) has finalized setting up the first national museum for the antiquities of Rosetta city in Beheira Governorate, as well as the completion of renovation of the antiquities of the historical city. more >
Fire destroys Egypt’s National Theater, two workers arrested
Egyptian firefighters put out the fire at the burning building of the Egyptian National Theater in downtown Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008. A fire destroyed the main hall of Egypt's National Theater in the heart of the downtown Cairo, wounding three firefighters. more >
August 2008
Palaces and the people
Cultural palaces and public libraries are spreading their wings to the public. more >
May 2008
Egyptian minister under fire for 'Goebbels-style' comment
Hosni, nominated by Egypt to be the chief of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), has recently raised Jewish ire for declaring in Parliament this month that he was prepared to burn Israeli books if he found them in local libraries. more >
December 2007
Egypt ponders bill to copyright the pyramids
Egypt might seek out copyright on its antiquities, from the pyramids to scarab beetles, in an attempt to collect royalties from the creation of replicas. more >
November 2007
Winners of Award for Dialogue between Cultures
The Winners of the Euro-Med Award for the Dialogue between Cultures have been announced. more >
October 2007
Comics bridge cultural gaps
Comics and animation, as mediums for the exchange of cultural ideas and norms that facilitate understanding, seem to be fitting formats for innovative public diplomacy initiatives. more >
September 2007
Egypt Pushing Efforts For UNESCO Chief
Egypt has stressed that it will continue its efforts to ensure Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni's ascension to be the Director-General of UNESCO. more >
August 2007
Culture Ministry Officials Arrested
The Egyptian government has arrested two ranking officials at the Ministry of Culture and charged them with bribery.
June 2007
Life buoy
It took the Ministry of Culture 30 years to start producing films again, writes Nevine El-Aref. Will the effort be worth it? more >
February 2007
Massive Cairo book fair sets religious tone
At the Cairo Book Fair, the largest and most important event of its kind in the Arab world, religious works dominate, while literature and scientific texts are often pushed to the margins. more >
November 2006
Egypt becoming an Islamic state, say intellectuals
Intellectuals accused Egypt's embattled culture minister Tuesday of caving in to Islamist pressure by proposing to set up a religious committee tasked with supervising the country's artistic production. more >
October 2006
Comeback for Egypt's veiled stars
Egyptian actresses who left the film world for a more pious lifestyle are now back on television screens, in a bid to reinvent their image as more in line with the country's growing Islamic trend. more >
July 2006
Egyptian artists worry about growing Islamic fervor
Many Egyptian artists say they worry about growing Islamic fundamentalism in a nation long known for being a cultural and secular center in the Arab world. more >
January 2006
Egyptian culture ministry focuses on museums
The Egyptian Ministry of Culture will be focusing on museums for 2006, with five new museums to be built. The focus comes at a time when Egypt is struggling to preserve newly discovered and stored artifacts. more >
December 2005
Plans unveiled for $550 million museum near the Pyramids
Plans have been announced for the $550 million Great Egyptian Museum, to be established near the Pyramids near Cairo. It will be among the world’s largest museums, and is by far the biggest to be built from scratch. more >
November 2005
Cultural policy of non-Western countries
The Egypt Council keeps a watch on all types of art and is also the primary government financier. But it also receives a lot of criticism. Read part ten of a series of articles on cultural policy. more >
September 2005
Minister's fingers burnt
Bowing to mounting pressure, Egyptian Culture Minister Farouk Hosni has resigned. more >
July 2005
Games of reason
Culture Minister Farouk Hosni's meeting with the Israeli ambassador this month has re-ignited the perennial debate of normalisation with Israel. Rania Khallaf speaks to two of its most vocal contributors in the literary sphere, gauging representative for and against positions at an ever more explosive juncture. more >
Internal disputes
How is the cultural establishment adjusting to all-round reforms in the buildup to the presidential elections? Rania Khallaf attended a special Supreme Council of Culture board meeting convened by Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni. more >
January 2005
National project for translation supported at 10 million Egyptian pounds
During his inauguration of the 37th session of the Cairo International Fair for book, the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak gave great support to the national project for translation at a cost of 10 million Egyptian pound. more >
February 2004
'Museum Without walls' Displays Egypt's Glories
Experiencing the glories of Egypt, both ancient and modern, will become a lot easier, thanks to a groundbreaking joint effort of the Egyptian government and a Toronto-based team of Web designers. more >
October 2003
Mrs Mubarak opens German Cultural Festival
Egypt's First Lady, Suzanne Mubarak, opened the German Cultural Festival 2003, which is hosted by Cairo and Alexandria from October 2-23 with the aim of boosting bridges of cultural dialogue between Egypt and Germany. more >
September 2003
Suzanne Mubarak receives Mediterranean culture award in Italy
Receiving the Mediterranean of Culture prize from the Accademia Del Mediterraneo in Naples, Egypt's First Lady Suzanne Mubarak said the Mediterranean must become the cradle 'of a global culture of peace in a world torn by war and hatred.' more >
August 2003
New antiquities museum opens in Egypt
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has inaugurated a new antiquities museum, displaying mummies as well as pharaonic and Roman artifacts, in the Mediterranean port city. more >
Egypt's reading for all to be generalised in the Arab states
With the success of Reading for All, which has made many precious books available at low prices for the past 13 years, the Egyptian experience is to lease life into the Arab cultural scene with a similar larger plan, a cultural official said recently more >
July 2003
Preaching to the converted
Flipping through the program on the first day of this three-day event that characterises the mandate of the Supreme Council for Culture, it was impossible not to be struck by how many references there were to religious discourse. more >
June 2003
Mubarak reiterates importance of cultural building of individuals
Egypt's First Lady Suzanne Mubarak announced that the cultural building of individuals is one of Egypt's most important national projects. more >
January 2003
Journeys to ancient Egypt
This week the Egyptian Museum launched a programme to teach Egyptians about their ancient history - the idea of the Minister for Culture Farouk Hosni, in emulation of a similar school at the Louvre in Paris. more >
December 2002
Centenary of Cairo's Egyptian Museum celebrated with fanfare, ambitious plans
For decades now, Cairo's famed Egyptian Museum has needed redefining and modernising. Those who run it say the revolution has begun. more >
Egypt recovers stolen art
Ancient works of art are the latest of Africa's antiquities to be returned to their rightful owners. more >
November 2002
Pageant, past and present
How a city was transformed for the opening of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. more >
October 2002
Alexandria before Alexander
Egyptians have allowed Greece to claim Alexandria as a Graeco-Roman legacy. Writer Jill Kamil goes back three hundred years before the great Mediterranean capital was founded and attempts to set the record straight. more >
September 2002
Bibliotheca Alexandrina to be inaugurated in October
The Egyptian Government has announced that the Official Inauguration Ceremony for the Bibliotheca Alexandrina that was postponed from 23 April 2002, due to events in the Middle East, will now take place on 16 October 2002 in Alexandria, Egypt. more >
More than a pretty building
Participation is at the core of good governance. And it is the participation of prominent Egyptian intellectuals that was recently being sought by Egypt's major research library the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. more >
Egypt boasts free Internet service
It seems globally subscription-free Internet service has pretty much proven itself an unprofitable anachronism - Except in Egypt. In this nation beset by creaky Net connections and outdated circuits, where computers remain a luxury for the vast majority, a free Internet strategy is boosting Internet access. more >
August 2002
Egypts buried traesures
In December Egyptologists and museologists will gather in the garden of the Egyptian Museum to celebrate its 100th anniversary. more >
Egypt damands return of antiquity
The Republic of Egypt has demanded the return of an antiquity acquired in 1963 by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, which Egypt says is stolen. more >
July 2002
A preview of Egypt's 14th Festival for Music and Song
Egypt's 14th Festival for Music and Song will be held at the open-air theatre of Cairo's Open House, and promises to deliver powerful decibels and stimulating rhythms. more >
Egypt marks World Refugee Day
'Moments to be free' gives a first hand account of Egypt's Refugee festival. 'The twists and turns that characterise the lives of the tens of thousands of refugees in Egypt was brought into sharp focus... at the American University in Cairo to mark World Refugee Day.' more >
June 2002
The quest for immortality
The largest exhibition of ancient Egyptian artefacts ever to tour North America and Canada will open at the National Gallery of Art in Washington on June 30. more >
February 2011
Exploring Mobility Around the Mediterranean
The Roberto Cimetta Fund (RCF) and the Arab Education Forum – Safar Fund are preparing this Symposium, to be held in Alexandria, Egypt on 4-6 February 2011, as part of their joint Istikshaf project exploring mobility around the Mediterranean, backed by the Anna Lindh Foundation. more >
December 2006
Guide to Cultural Management: Building Knowledge and Developing Culture Resources
A guide in Arabic to topics in cultural management. more >
The international who's who in cultural policy, planning and research >