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UNESCO is Choosing a New Director Who Will Face a Big Funding Shortage after US Exit

A UNESCO logo is seen at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, May 29, 2023. (Reuters)
A UNESCO logo is seen at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, May 29, 2023. (Reuters)
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UNESCO is Choosing a New Director Who Will Face a Big Funding Shortage after US Exit

A UNESCO logo is seen at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, May 29, 2023. (Reuters)
A UNESCO logo is seen at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, May 29, 2023. (Reuters)

An Egyptian antiquities professor and ex-tourism minister is facing off against a Congolese economist who promoted schooling in refugee camps in a race to become the new director of UNESCO.

Whoever wins will inherit a world body reeling from the Trump administration’s recent decision to pull the United States out of UNESCO, portending a big budget shortfall at the agency best known for its World Heritage sites around the globe, The Associated Press said.

UNESCO’s executive board begins voting Monday to recommend either Khaled el-Enany or Firmin Édouard Matoko for the position of director-general. The decision by the board, which represents 58 of the agency’s 194 member states, is expected to be finalized by UNESCO’s general assembly next month.

Noble ambitions and persistent problems

In addition to choosing and protecting World Heritage sites and traditions, the Paris-based United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization works to ensure education for girls, promotes Holocaust awareness and funds scientific research in developing countries, among other activities. Outgoing UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay notably led a high-profile effort to rebuild the ancient Iraqi city of Mosul after it was devastated under the ISIS group.

UNESCO has also long been plagued by accusations of mismanagement and waste.

Trump argues that the agency, which voted in 2011 to admit Palestine as a member, is too politicized and anti-Israel. US supporters of UNESCO, meanwhile, say withdrawing Washington’s support allows China to play an outsized role in the world body.

Meanwhile the vote comes at a time when the whole 80-year-old UN system is facing financial challenges and deepening divisions over the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

Frontrunner wants to be UNESCO’s first Arab leader

El-Enany worked as a tour guide through ancient Egyptian sites, earned a doctorate in France and served as Egypt’s tourism minister and antiquities minister.

Arab countries have long wanted to lead UNESCO, and el-Enany is seen as having a good chance of making that happen. The African Union and Arab League are among those that have expressed support for his bid.

He would be expected to focus on UNESCO’s cultural programs if chosen, and has pledged to continue UNESCO’s work to fight antisemitism and religious intolerance. Israel left UNESCO at the end of 2018.

While he has no UN experience, his backers say that could help him make tough reform decisions.

Challenger wants to calm tensions

Republic of Congo’s candidate Firmin Matoko, 69, spent most of his career working for UNESCO, including stints in Rwanda soon after the genocide, during peace negotiations in El Salvador and beyond.

He says he wants UNESCO to move away from political tensions and focus on technical solutions. He described helping train teachers at a refugee camp in Somalia in the 1990s, and meeting one of them years later after she became education minister. That, he says, is one reason UNESCO matters.

He says he is ready to cut jobs or programs if needed, and pledges “budgetary rigor.”

Like el-Enany, he wants to tap more private sector money to make up for the loss of US and other funding, notably from BRICS countries.

At the same time, he said, “I will do everything so that the United States comes back, while taking into account what they reproach UNESCO for.”

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Culture

Saudi Arabia: Ship of Tolerance Initiative Promotes Cultural Dialogue in Jeddah

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) will offer traditional craft workshops throughout Ramadan. SPA
The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) will offer traditional craft workshops throughout Ramadan. SPA
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Saudi Arabia: Ship of Tolerance Initiative Promotes Cultural Dialogue in Jeddah

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) will offer traditional craft workshops throughout Ramadan. SPA
The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) will offer traditional craft workshops throughout Ramadan. SPA

The Saudi Ministry of Culture, in collaboration with the "Lenobadir" volunteer and community partnership program and the Athr Foundation, has launched the Ship of Tolerance initiative in Historic Jeddah during Ramadan.

The initiative aims to enhance shared human values through arts, and promote tolerance and coexistence among children and families. It provides an educational and cultural experience aligned with the area’s unique character as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

As part of this global art project, children will create artworks that represent acceptance and dialogue.

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) will offer traditional craft workshops throughout Ramadan, linking the initiative's values with local heritage and enriching visitors' connection to the region's identity.

This effort supports cultural programs with educational and social dimensions in Historic Jeddah, activating local sites for experiences that combine art, crafts, and community participation. It aligns with the National Strategy for Culture under Saudi Vision 2030, focusing on heritage preservation and expanding culture's impact on daily life.

Culture

Oscar Contender ‘Hamnet’ Boosts Tourism at Shakespeare Heritage Sites 

A view of Shakespeare’s Birthplace, William Shakespeare's childhood home, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Britain, February 9, 2026. (Reuters)
A view of Shakespeare’s Birthplace, William Shakespeare's childhood home, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Britain, February 9, 2026. (Reuters)
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Oscar Contender ‘Hamnet’ Boosts Tourism at Shakespeare Heritage Sites 

A view of Shakespeare’s Birthplace, William Shakespeare's childhood home, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Britain, February 9, 2026. (Reuters)
A view of Shakespeare’s Birthplace, William Shakespeare's childhood home, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Britain, February 9, 2026. (Reuters)

On a cloudy winter's day, visitors stream into what was once William Shakespeare's childhood home in Stratford-upon-Avon and the nearby Anne Hathaway's cottage, family residence of the bard's wife.

Hathaway's cottage is one of the settings for the BAFTA and Oscar best film contender "Hamnet", and the movie's success is drawing a new wave of tourists to Shakespeare sites in the town in central England.

Shakespeare's Birthplace is the house the young William once lived in and where his father worked as a glove maker, while Hathaway's cottage is where he would have visited his future wife early in their relationship.

Typically, around 250,000 visitors, from the UK, Europe, the United States, China and elsewhere, walk through the locations each year, according to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. ‌The charity looks after ‌Shakespeare heritage sites, which also include Shakespeare's New Place, the site of ‌the ⁠Stratford home where the ⁠bard died in 1616.

Visitors are flocking in this year thanks to "Hamnet", the film based on Maggie O'Farrell's 2020 novel, which gives a fictional account of the relationship between Shakespeare and Hathaway, also known as Agnes, and the death of their 11-year-old son Hamnet in 1596.

"Visitor numbers have increased by about 15 to 20% across all sites since the film was released back in January. I think that will only continue as we go throughout the year," Richard Patterson, chief operating officer for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, said.

"They particularly want ⁠to look (at) Anne Hathaway's cottage and the specifics around how the family ‌engaged in the spaces and the landscape in and around ‌the cottage... you can see why he would have been inspired."

NEW ACCESS TO SHAKESPEARE

"Hamnet" has 11 nominations at ‌Sunday's British BAFTA awards, including best film and leading actress for Jessie Buckley, who plays Agnes. It ‌also has eight Oscar nominations, with Buckley seen as the frontrunner to win best actress.

"Hamnet" is set in Stratford-upon-Avon and London although it was not filmed in Stratford.

It sees Paul Mescal's young Shakespeare fall for Agnes while teaching Latin to pay off his father's debts. The drama, seen mainly through Agnes' eyes, focuses on their ‌life together and grief over Hamnet's death, leading Shakespeare to write "Hamlet".

"Shakespeare... is notoriously enigmatic. He writes about humanity, about feeling, about emotion, about conflict, ⁠but where do we understand ⁠who he is in that story?" said Charlotte Scott, a professor of Shakespeare studies and interim director of collections, learning and research at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

"And that's driven people creative and otherwise for hundreds and hundreds of years. Where is Shakespeare's heart? And this is what the film I think has so beautifully opened up."

Little is known about how the couple met. Shakespeare was 18 and Hathaway 26 when they married in 1582. Daughter Susanna arrived in 1583 and twins Judith and Hamnet in 1585.

The film acknowledges the names Hamnet and Hamlet were interchangeable back then. While grief is a dominant theme, audiences also see Shakespeare in love and as a father.

"A lot of people will see this film not necessarily having... had any kind of relationship with Shakespeare," Scott said.

"So people will come to this film, I hope, and find a new way of accessing Shakespeare that is about creativity, that is about understanding storytelling as a constant process of regeneration, but also crucially, looking at it from that kind of emotive angle."

Culture

Culture Ministry Continues Preparations in Historic Jeddah to Welcome Visitors during Ramadan 

Historic Jeddah has emerged as a leading cultural tourism destination during Ramadan. (SPA)
Historic Jeddah has emerged as a leading cultural tourism destination during Ramadan. (SPA)
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Culture Ministry Continues Preparations in Historic Jeddah to Welcome Visitors during Ramadan 

Historic Jeddah has emerged as a leading cultural tourism destination during Ramadan. (SPA)
Historic Jeddah has emerged as a leading cultural tourism destination during Ramadan. (SPA)

The Saudi Ministry of Culture is continuing its efforts to revitalize Historic Jeddah in preparation for welcoming visitors during the holy month of Ramadan, offering cultural programs, events, and heritage experiences that reflect the authenticity of the past.

The district has emerged as a leading cultural tourism destination at this time of year as part of the “The Heart of Ramadan” campaign launched by the Saudi Tourism Authority.

Visitors are provided the opportunity to explore the district’s attractions, including archaeological sites located within the geographical boundaries of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed area, which represent a central component of the Kingdom’s urban and cultural heritage.

The area also features museums that serve as gateways to understanding the city’s rich heritage and cultural development, in addition to traditional markets that narrate historical stories through locally made products and Ramadan specialties that reflect authentic traditions.

These initiatives are part of the ministry’s ongoing efforts to revitalize Historic Jeddah in line with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 and aiming to transform it into a vibrant hub for arts, culture, and the creative economy, while preserving its tangible and intangible heritage.