ICCROM-Sharjah Director honoured in Egyptian awards ceremony

The Egyptian National Organization for Urban Harmony, operating under Egypt’s Ministry of Culture in collaboration with UNESCO, has chosen to honour two prominent architectural heritage specialists from Egypt and the Arab world, for their significant contributions to safeguard cultural heritage.

These personalities included Dr Zaki Aslan, Regional Representative of ICCROM for the Arab States and Director of ICCROM’s Sharjah Centre, and Dr Salah Zaki, Dean of Architecture at Al-Azhar University, Egypt.

The ceremony occurred on 7 June during the third annual photography award titled Turathi (Heritage), held at the Opera House of Cairo.  The Turathi contest for heritage photography saw 333 photographers submit 899 photographs of historic monuments in the Arab world.

Dr Mohammed Abu Saada, president of the National Organization for Urban Harmony, conferred the honours. Also attending was Dr Eglal Almalek, Director of Conservation, National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums, Sudan, and ICCROM Council Member.

Dr Zaki Aslan managed ICCROM’s ATHAR programme from Rome between 2003 and 2012 before moving to establish ICCROM’s Regional Office in Sharjah. ICCROM-Sharjah has been a hub for activities tailored to address pressing issues in the protection of cultural heritage in the Arab region, lately exacerbated in places such as Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen. Aslan obtained his Masters degree in the Conservation of the Built Environment at the University of Montréal in Canada, and his PhD at University College London.

Dr Salah Zaki, formerly Chief Architect at the Egyptian Ministry of Culture, was honoured for his contributions throughout his career to protect cultural heritage in historic Cairo, including the latest project to upgrade the Souq El-Selah in Islamic Cairo. He has published widely on subjects related to heritage and housing in Egyptian historic environments. He has been active in the field ever since obtaining his doctorate from Cornell University, USA, in 1964.

ICCCROM’s Director-General, Dr Webber Ndoro, and its staff congratulate Dr Aslan on this achievement.