The board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO ) has nominated Egypt’s Khaled el-Enany, an academic and former minister of tourism and antiquities, as its next head, ahead of the organisation’s general conference next month.

If confirmed, el-Enany, a professor of Egyptology at Cairo’s Helwan University, would become the first Arab director-general of the organisation, which oversees the UN’s handling of cultural heritage, alongside international cooperation efforts in other areas including science and education.

The former minister campaigned widely for the role, which was also contested by Firmin Edouard Matoko of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Gabriela Ramos of Mexico, who withdrew from the race earlier this year.

The decision by th

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