Moushira Mahmoud Khattab is an

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

politician and diplomat born in 1944. She is serving as the president of the

National Council for Human Rights The National Council for Human Rights (NCHR; ) is an Egyptian human rights organization established in 2003 with a mission of promoting and maintaining human rights in Egypt. The NCHR publishes annual reports concerning the current status of huma ...

, Egypt's national Human Rights Institution. She previously served as minister of family and population, assistant minister of foreign affairs, Ambassador of Egypt to South Africa, the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

and Slovakia as well serving in Egypt’s diplomatic missions in Australia, Hungary, Austria and the United Nations in New York City and Vienna. She is also a

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

activist advocating the rights of children and women and the former vice chair and rapporteur of the

UN Committee on the Rights of the Child The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is a body of experts that monitor and report on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The committee also monitors the convention's three optional protoco ...

based at the

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in Geneva. On 19 July 2016, the

Prime Minister of Egypt A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...

announced that Moushira Khattab would be Egypt's candidate for the post of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

director-general at the elections due to be held in 2017.

Education

Khattab holds a PhD on the rights of the child from

Cairo University Cairo University () is Egypt's premier public university. Its main campus is in Giza, immediately across the Nile from Cairo. It was founded on 21 December 1908;"Brief history and development of Cairo University." Cairo University Faculty of En ...

, an M.A. in International Relations from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

at Chapel Hill, NC, USA, and a B.A. in political science from Cairo University, Faculty of Economics and Political Science.

Diplomatic career

A career diplomat serving as Egypt’s first Ambassador to South Africa and before it she was the Ambassador to Czechoslovakia during its peaceful separation to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Khattab ended her diplomatic career as assistant minister of foreign affairs for international cultural relations. Khattab also served at Egypt's diplomatic missions in Budapest, Vienna and Melbourne as well as serving at the UN headquarters in New York and

UNIDO The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) (French: Organisation des Nations unies pour le développement industriel; French/Spanish acronym: ONUDI) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that assists countries in ...

headquarters in Vienna.

Ministerial career

From March 2009 until February 2011, Khattab served as minister of state for family and population. She holds the position of vice-president of the International Bureau for Children’s Rights “IBCR”. Khattab represents the MENA Region on the Board of

Child Helpline International Child Helpline International is a global network of 173 child helplines in 142 countries (as of December 2019). History In 1989, Child Helpline International founder Jeroo Billimoria explored the idea of creating a global network of child ...

and Chairs both the National Committee and the steering Committee of Middle East & North Africa on Violence against Children. Khattab served as Vice Chair, Rapporteur and member of UN

Committee on the Rights of the Child The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is a body of experts that monitor and report on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The committee also monitors the convention's three optional protoco ...

2002–2010. She is a member in several associations including the Women Leadership Council to combat

trafficking Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

in persons including children, UNGIFT- Vienna 2008. She chaired the ad hoc UN intergovernmental expert group that formulated the UN Guidelines on Justice Matters related to children victims and witnesses to crime adopted by

ECOSOC The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is one of six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization, specifically in regards to the fifteen specialized ...

in 2005. Khattab is vice president of the Aflatoun Child Savings International based in Amsterdam and is a regular lecturer on children’s rights to police officers, judges, women organizations and the media. Since 2011, Ambassador Khattab has been a speaker and panelist in key events related to women's rights, children's rights and development as well as other international events.

Candidature for UNESCO Director-General

On 19 July 2016, the Prime Minister of Egypt announced that Khattab would be Egypt's candidate for the post of UNESCO director-general at the elections due to be held in 2017. The announcement was made against the backdrop of The Egyptian Museum to symbolise Egypt's strong culture and rich heritage and also as one of the founding members and earliest partners of UNESCO including the relocation of the

Abu Simbel Abu Simbel is a historic site comprising two massive Rock-cut architecture, rock-cut Egyptian temple, temples in the village of Abu Simbel (village), Abu Simbel (), Aswan Governorate, Upper Egypt, near the border with Sudan. It is located on t ...

temples in 1964 among many others. Khattab's candidature was endorsed by the

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the African Union. The b ...

at the 27th AU summit held in

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from 10–18 July 2016.. However ultimately Khattab's bid to become UNESCO Director General was not successful.

Honours

In 1999, Khattab was awarded the

Order of Good Hope The Order of Good Hope or Order of the Cape of Good Hope is a dormant order of merit of the Republic of South Africa. History The Order of Good Hope was founded in 1973, by the republican government of South Africa, to grant those who had dis ...

by the President of the Republic of South Africa, the highest order which can be awarded to a foreign national. In 2010, Khattab was awarded

Knight Grand Cross A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

of the Italian Republic by the

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. In 2008, she was awarded the International Women of Courage Award by the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs ...

. In 2007, she was awarded Commander of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

of the Italian Republic.

References

*http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/07/10/egypt-nominates-moushira-khattab-for-unesco-director-general/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Khattab, Moushira Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Cairo University alumni University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Ambassadors of Egypt to South Africa Ambassadors of Egypt to the Czech Republic Ambassadors of Egypt to Czechoslovakia Ambassadors of Egypt to Slovakia Women government ministers of Egypt Egyptian women diplomats Egyptian women ambassadors 21st-century Egyptian women politicians 21st-century Egyptian politicians 20th-century Egyptian women politicians