Khaled al-Anani

Khaled Ahmed El-Enany Ali Ezz (; born 14 March 1971) is an Egyptian Egyptologist and politician who was elected as the 12th Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in November 2025. He previously served as Minister of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt between 2016 and 2022.

Early life Khaled El-Enany was born on 14 March 1971 in Giza, Egypt, and grew up in Roda Island in Cairo. In addition, he became a member of several scientific institutions, notably being a corresponding member of the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin, as well as an associate researcher and member of the board of directors of the French Institute of Oriental Archeology (IFAO) since 2002.

When the government of Mostafa Madbouly was appointed in 2018, he retained his post.

He was replaced by Ahmed Issa as Minister of Tourism and Antiquities in a cabinet reshuffle on 13 August 2022.

He also organises press conferences following archaeological discoveries to promote tourism. In addition, he aims to combat extremism by encouraging the Egyptian population to take a greater interest in ancient Egypt history.

In 2024, he was designated UN Tourism Ambassador for Cultural Tourism. In January 2025, he was designated as the rapporteur of the African World Heritage Fund.

Director-General of UNESCO (2025–present) El-Enany was presented as Egypt's candidate for Director-General of UNESCO in 2023. His candidacy was supported by the African Union, the Arab League and several countries including France, Spain, Turkey, Gabon, Germany and Brazil.

On 6 October 2025, UNESCO's Executive Board proposed him as the new Director-General of UNESCO, receiving 55 votes out of 57 and beating the Republic of Congo's candidate Firmin Edouard Matoko. He was formally elected by the General Conference on 6 November 2025 held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. He became the first Arab to led the agency and the second from Africa after Senegal's Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow, and will succeed Audrey Azoulay on 15 November 2025.

His election was criticised by 50 cultural heritage groups and experts for failing to properly manage Egypt's heritage during his tenure as Minister of Antiquities, for allowing, for example, the demolition of parts of the City of the Dead in Cairo and the construction of tourism infrastructure near Saint Catherine's Monastery in Sinai, which are both UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (2015) Honorary Doctorate from the Paul Valéry University Montpellier 3 (2021) Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of the Order of the Rising Sun (2021) Officier of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (2020)