Sisi forms supreme committee to manage World Heritage Sites in Egypt

CAIRO – 14 December 2018: Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi announced his decision to form a supreme committee to manage the World Heritage Sites in Egypt.

Engineer Sherif Ismail, Assistant to the President on national and strategic projects, will head the committee; the headquarters of the committee will be at the Ministry of Antiquities.

The official newspaper published in its Friday evening issue the decision to form the committee, which is number 550 for 2018.

As per the Presidential Decree, the committee consists of 14 individuals, most prominently Khaled al-Anani, Minister of Antiquities, Rania al-Mashat, Minister of Tourism, Major General Mahmoud Shaarawi, Minister of Local Development, Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, Fayza Abul-Naga, President for Urban Planning, and Mohamed Abu Seada, the Head of the National Organization for Urban Harmony.

The committee also includes representatives from the Ministry of Defense, Housing and Utilities, Foreign Affairs, Interior Affairs, Investment and International Cooperation, and Transport, as well as the General Intelligence Service.

The Committee will be responsible for the development of a strategic vision for the management, protection and development of the Egyptian World Heritage Sites, maximizing their potential and benefiting from sustainable development plans, and coordinating with all local and international stakeholders inside and outside Egypt in the management, protection and preservation of these sites and their surrounding areas.