Manal Abdel Samad Najd ( ar, منال عبد الصمد; 28 March 1975) is a Lebanese politician who held the position of the

Minister of Information An information minister (also called minister of information) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with information matters; it is often linked with censorship and propaganda. Sometimes the position is given to ...

in the Cabinet of the Prime Minister Hassan Diab in the year 2020.

Education

From the year 2004 until the year 2009, Manal Abdel Samad Najd studied fiscal laws at the American University of

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

(AUB), from where she also received her MBA. Then, she pursued her studies to obtain her Ph.D from the

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University (french: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: 'the Sorbonne') is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de So ...

in France, Paris in 2014.

Professional career

In the year 1997, Manal Abdel Samad Najd began her service in the Lebanese Ministry of Finance, in which she was involved in the implementation of a

Value-added Tax A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...

(VAT) in

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

. A few years later, she was promoted to the Head of the Department of Tax Legislation and Policy at the Directorate of VAT. Additionally, she was a lecturer at both the

Saint Joseph University Saint Joseph University of Beirut (French: ''Université Saint-Joseph de Beyrouth'', abbreviated to and commonly known as "USJ") is a private Catholic research university located in Beirut, Lebanon, which was founded in 1875 by French Jesuit mis ...

(USJ) and the American University of Beirut (AUB).

Political career

In January 2020, she became the

, after being proposed by the Prime Minister Dr. Hassan Diab as an independent candidate. She was one of the six female ministers out of a total of 20 ministers in the Diab Government, an event that was regarded as a step in the right direction towards achieving gender equality in Lebanese politics. In relation of the spark of the Coronavirus disease pandemic, many conspiracy theories started to circulate in the country, which she quickly addressed and countered by announcing a cooperation with

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level o ...

(WHO),

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid t ...

and the

United Nations Development Programme The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

. Then, Manal Abdel Samad Najd resigned her position on the 9th of August 2020, following the explosions in the port of Beirut which took place on August 4, 2020. The next day, Dr. Hassan Diab announced the resignation of the government, and Manal Abdel Samad had been fulfilling the duties of the minister as a caretaker until a new successor is found.

Personal life

Manal Abdel-Samad was born on 28 March 1975. She is married to Youssef Najd and has three children with him: Carole, Rayan and Rami-Jo. She is fluent in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

, English, and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

. Manal Abdel-Samad is a

Druze The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings o ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdel Samad, Manal 1975 births American University of Beirut alumni Lebanese Druze Information ministers of Lebanon Lebanese Democratic Party politicians Living people Members of the Parliament of Lebanon Paris-Sorbonne University alumni People from Chouf District