The General Conference of UNESCO on Thursday elected Khaled El-Enany as Director-General of the Organization, with 172 votes out of a total of 174 ballots.
UNESCO General Conference elects Egypt's El-Enany as Director-General
Egypt's Khaled El Enany speaks to the press after being elected Secretary-General by UNESCO executive board members, at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025
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Enany was elected Director-General of the international organization in early October, after receiving 55 out of 58 votes in the UNESCO Executive Board, which is responsible for electing the Director-General.
His Congolese opponent, Firmin Mataku, received only two votes. He will succeed Audrey Azoulay, who has held this position since 2017, on 15 November.
El-Enany is the 12th Director-General of UNESCO. He is the first Director-General from an Arab country, and the second from Africa to hold this position since Amadou Mahtar Mbow (1974-1987) from Senegal.