Minister of Antiques Khaled Anany said on Saturday during his meeting with President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and Prime Minister (PM) Sherif Ismail that 484 antique pieces were returned to Egypt from different countries, according to a presidency statement.
President Al-Sisi and Ismail met on Sunday with Anany and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdelghaffar, where they discussed the latest developments in the ministries’ projects.
Anany said that the ministry drafted a law to be presented to the parliament to protect antiques and stipulate strict punishment on antique-related crimes.
Anany also reflected on the recent antiques discoveries, including a cemetery in Luxor, a pyramid in Dahshur, and a statue in Matariya.
In March, a statue belonging to the 19th dynasty king Ramses II and other antiquities were discovered in the district of Matariya and transported to the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square.
Furthermore, Anany asserted that the move of antiques to the new Egyptian Museum is being concluded, adding that its inauguration was scheduled for April 2018, and President Al-Sisi, “agreed to head its board of trustees,” read the statement.
Meanwhile, Abdelghaffar said that three technological schools were established in the universities of New Cairo, Beni Seuf, and Quesna, asserting the importance of developing the admissions procedures in universities.
Abdelghaffar also presented the ministry’s strategy towards educational hospitals, of which there are 116 throughout Egypt serving more than 11 million citizens.
President Al-Sisi directed for there to be an educational area for science and innovation established in the New Administrative Capital project, including offices of national and international universities. The project had originally been proposed by President Al-Sisi as a solution to the country’s housing shortage due to a rapidly growing population, as well as a long-term investment.
