In a grand ceremony held this evening in the garden of the residence of the Japanese ambassador in Cairo, Dr. Khaled El-Anany, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, from the Japanese government, which announced last November that it had granted it this medal. He and Dr. Zahi Hawass, the former Minister of Antiquities, for their outstanding contributions to strengthening relations between Egypt and Japan and developing cultural and academic exchanges.
The Order of the Rising Sun - a gold and silver star - is a high-ranking decoration awarded by the Emperor of Japan to those who have made outstanding achievements in Japan and the international community, with a history dating back nearly 150 years.
The ceremony was attended by Dr. Zahi Hawass, the former Minister of Antiquities, and a group of his family, friends and colleagues.
During the celebration, Ambassador Oka Hiroshi, Ambassador of Japan in Cairo, was keen to deliver a speech in Arabic to celebrate this occasion, expressing his happiness for honoring Dr. Khaled El-Anany and handing him this medal on behalf of the State of Japan and in appreciation of his many achievements and contributions to strengthening relations between Japan and Egypt through cultural and academic exchange over the years. Tawila, describing this occasion as an opportunity to praise these achievements, the most important of which is the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is the best evidence of the strong cooperation relations and the depth of friendship that binds the two countries, stressing that this cooperation was only thanks to understanding and wise leadership.
The ambassador praised the assistance provided by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities during Dr. Khaled El-Anani’s tenure as Minister of Antiquities and then Tourism and Antiquities, which resulted in many tangible results of cooperation projects between the two countries, including the project to restore the Khufu boat II and the restoration of a group of artifacts that will be displayed in the Egyptian Museum. Great cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Organization (JICA).
He referred to Dr. Khaled Al-Anani's outstanding achievements in the friendly relations between the two countries as Minister of Tourism and Antiquities for many years, as he attended the inauguration ceremony of the Emperor of Japan on behalf of the President of the Republic in 2019.
In his speech on this occasion, Dr. Khaled Al-Anani expressed his full appreciation to the State of Japan for granting him this medal in the name of His Majesty the Emperor, taking this opportunity to express his gratitude for granting him this high medal, which is the first medal granted by the Japanese government.
In his speech, Dr. Khaled Al-Anani stressed that it was an honor for him to represent His Excellency the President to attend the coronation of the Emperor and meet him personally and Her Majesty the Empress, describing it as a unique occasion.
He pointed out that this visit was not the only one for him to Japan, but he visited it several times to inaugurate the exhibition "The Age of Pyramid Builders" in the Japanese city of Kyoto in 2016, and to attend the signing of the cooperation protocol between the Tokyo National Museum and the Grand Egyptian Museum and the opening of a temporary exhibition of antiquities in Tokyo. The hospitality that he found from all officials in Japan and the Japanese people, stressing the depth of the friendly relations between Egypt and Japan, as 12 archaeological missions from Japanese universities work in excavations in various Egyptian archaeological sites, in addition to holding archaeological exhibitions, including an exhibition of the golden pharaoh Tutankhamun in 1965 and 6 other archaeological exhibitions, pointing out that Egypt is one of the favorite destinations for Japanese tourists, and the Egyptian Tourism Activation Authority (ETA) participates every year in the Japan Tourism Fair in Osaka.
At the end of his speech, Dr. Khaled El-Anany thanked his family and friends from Helwan University and employees of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities for their help and dedication to work that contributed to achieving great achievements during his tenure.
It is worth noting that Dr. Khaled El-Anany was awarded the Order of Merit from Poland in 2021, and from France he received the Knight Medal in Arts and Letters in 2015 when he was supervising the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Fustat.
Fri, May. 27, 2022
