UNESCO’s executive board on Monday elected Egypt’s former antiquities and tourism minister, Khaled El-Enany, as the next director-general of the United Nations’ cultural agency, amid tensions over U.S. plans to withdraw from the organisation.
El-Enany, 54, will succeed French director-general Audrey Azoulay, who is stepping down after two four-year terms. He won 55 out of 57 votes cast by the board, defeating the Republic of Congo’s Firmin Edouard Matoko, UNESCO’s former assistant director-general.
The United States abstained from the vote after announcing its intention to leave UNESCO by the end of 2026, citing alleged anti-Israel bias and the agency’s “divisive” policies — a move expected to significantly impact funding, as Washington provides about eight percent of UNESCO’s budget.
Speaking after the vote, El-Enany pledged to prioritise stabilising UNESCO’s finances and depoliticising its activities.
“The current challenge is the budget. That is going to be the priority of all of us,” he said, adding that he aimed to promote “technical deliberations” rather than political divisions within the organisation.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hailed the appointment as a “historic success” for Egypt and wished El-Enany success in his “noble mission.”
If confirmed by UNESCO’s General Assembly in Uzbekistan on November 6, El-Enany will officially assume office on November 14, becoming the first Arab and second African to head the organisation since Senegal’s Amadou-Mahtar Mbow (1974–1987).
