MOHAMED EL-BARADEI Having just been appointed to a third term as director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed El-Baradei was awarded the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. He has been described as a "fearless advocate" of curbing nuclear arms and a promoter of safe nuclear energy while the importance of his agency's work is considered "incalculable." El-Baradei will hold his post as head of the IAEA until November 2009. "In the next four years we have tremendous challenges. We have major issues facing global security; we have major issues facing development. These two issues cut across all our activities. My colleagues and I are committed to do our very best to protect ourselves against the dissemination of nuclear weapons; and against poverty. We will continue to work with the members of the international community to see a world free from nuclear weapons," he explained on his re-appointment. El-Baradei had been a senior member of the IAEA since 1984 holding a number of high-level policy positions, including that of the Agency's legal adviser and, beginning in 1993, assistant director-general for external relations. El-Baradei began his career in the Egyptian Diplomatic Service in 1964, serving on two occasions in the Permanent Missions of Egypt to the United Nations in New York and Geneva, in charge of political, legal and arms control issues. During his career as diplomat, international civil servant and scholar, El-Baradei has become closely familiar with the work and processes of international organisations, particularly in the fields of international peace and security and international law making lecturing internationally in the fields of international law, international organisations, arms control and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. He is also the author of various articles and books on these subjects. BOUTROS BOUTROS-GHALI Boutros Boutros-Ghali became the sixth secretary-general of the United Nations on 1 January 1992. He was the first Egyptian, African and Arab to hold this top international position. At the time of his appointment, he was Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign Affairs of Egypt and had served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from October 1977 until 1991. Boutros-Ghali began his career as professor of international law and international relations at Cairo University where he taught with distinction between 1949 and 1977. He also served for a long period as president of the Egyptian Society of International Law and as president of the Centre of Political and Strategic Studies, Al-Ahram. He was a member of the Curatorium Administrative Council of The Hague Academy of International Law from 1978; member of the Scientific Committee of the Académie mondiale pour la paix (Menton, France) from 1978; and associate member of the Institute affari internazionali (Rome) from 1979. He also served as a member of the Committee on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations of the International Labour Organisation from 1971 until 1979. Boutros-Ghali also founded the Al-Ahram Iqtisadi magazine and the quarterly Al-Siyassa Al-Dawlia. His publication list exceeds 100 titles in the fields of regional and international affairs, law and diplomacy, and political science. Following his retirement from the United Nations, Boutros- Ghali was elected president of the Organisation of French- Speaking Countries. He is currently president of the National Council for Human Rights in Egypt. He continues to be active in the fields of international law, human rights, economic and social development, development in the Mediterranean region and Afro-Arab cooperation. MOSTAPHA KAMAL TOLBA With the emergence of an understanding regarding the dangers of pollution, Mostapha Kamal Tolba has been at the helm of the battle for a an environmentally safe world. It all began in 1976 when, as undersecretary- general of the UN, elected by the United Nations General Assembly for four consecutive four-year terms, Tolba was nominated Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). By 1992, he had spent two entire decades serving UNEP to which he had already been nominated as Deputy Executive Director in 1973, with the rank of UN assistant secretary-general, before becoming its Executive Director in 1976. When he handed over the leadership of UNEP to his successor he pledged to continue his activism against the environmental dangers that continue to plague the planet. A prominent scientist, university professor, undersecretary of state for higher education and Cabinet Minister -- Tolba has throughout his career used his skills as a politician and diplomat towards the support of an emerging global environment movement. He is the author of many scientific works published under the aegis of the United Nations (mainly UNEP and UNESCO) and is considered a must reference for students of the environment and development across the world. IBRAHIM SHIHATA The late Ibrahim Shihata, universally acclaimed as one of the leading international law scholars of the 20th century and a vocal champion of the interests of developing countries, was senior vice-president and General Counsel of the World Bank as well as secretary-general of the International Centre for the Settlement of International Disputes from 1983 to 2000. He was the first Arab national to hold these positions. He is credited with having elevated the position of General Counsel to a new level of importance by the force of his personality and his intellect, which was reflected in his exceptional influence on the policies and direction of the Bank during his tenure. Among the numerous achievements he is remembered for at the Bank is his success at establishing, virtually single handedly, the World Bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and in the preparation of the World Bank Guidelines for the Legal Treatment of Foreign Investment. He also played a key role in the establishment of the Inspection panel of the World Bank which greatly enhanced the bank's accountability to its members and the general public. Shihata wrote numerous books and articles, including 11 seminal books on matters related to the Bank's work and on crucial issues in international development. He received numerous international awards and honorary degrees. Shihata joined the World Bank after serving for seven years as the first director-general of the OPEC Fund for International Development. He also founded and was president of the International Development Law Institute, headquartered in Rome, since its inception in 1983 until he passed away in May 2001. SHAKOUR SHAALAN Abdel Shakour Shaalan is currently the Executive Director representing Egypt and twelve Arab countries and the Maldives on the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He was elected to this post in 1992 after retiring as the influential director of the Middle East Department of the IMF, a post he held for fifteen years. It was in this latter position that Shaalan gained his fame in Egypt, as he led the IMF team that negotiated the economic stabilisation programme agreed to by the Egyptian government in 1990. While he was often accused in the Egyptian press of setting demanding conditions on the government, some in the IMF thought he was too soft on Egypt. The main elements of the economic stabilisation programme were the reduction of Egypt's deteriorating fiscal deficit (at the time it was the highest in the world), requiring the implementation of painful austerity measures and the elimination of Egypt's multiple currency exchange rates. Though implementation took several more years than originally envisaged, the programme was eventually completed in 1998. At that point, the fiscal deficit had been reduced dramatically, the exchange rate was unified, and 50 per cent of Egypt's official foreign debt was written off. MOHAMED EL-ASHRY Mohamed El-Ashry has worked towards the protection of the environment and the wise management of natural resources through his work in academia, NGOs, think tanks and international institutions. El-Ashry's most significant achievement in recent years, was his role in the structuring, management, and operation of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) which he served as its first CEO and chairman. Under his leadership, the GEF grew from a modest pilot program with less than 30 members and $800 million to the largest single source of funding for the global environment with 174 member countries and a portfolio of more than 1,200 projects in 140 developing countries worth $16.5 billion. In his three terms of service, he mobilised from donor countries a total of $7 billion in three replenishments. In 2002, for the third replenishment, donors cast an extraordinary vote of confidence in the GEF by replenishing it with $3 billion. Before leaving the GEF, El-Ashry ensured that "desertification", which is of great interest to developing countries especially in Africa, became a focal area of the GEF and received significant financial resources. Today, many recognise El-Ashry as the father of the GEF. SAID EL-NAGGAR The late Said El Naggar's UN career started in New York when in 1965 he was appointed as deputy director of research in UNCTAD, the then newly created organization by the well-known Argentine economist Don Raul Prebisch. When UNCTAD later moved to the Geneva UN Headquarters El Naggar remained with the organization until his nomination in August 1971 as director of UNESOB (United Nations Social and Economic Office) in Beirut. Under his direction this office later became the Economic Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). He returned to Geneva for another year with UNCTAD before his appointment in the autumn 1975 as advisor to the Kuwaiti government, and in the autumn of l976 he was elected by the Arab countries to be their executive director representing Egypt and all the Arab countries east of Egypt, plus Pakistan, at the Executive Board of the World Bank. He remained on the board until late 1984. Another milestone in his career was his nomination by his government for the candidacy for membership of the newly established Appellate Body of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1995. He was selected to be one of seven members of the Appellate Body, a position he held until 2000 when he retired. He then resumed the full schedule of acting as president of the New Civic Forum (NCF), the NGO he formed in Egypt in service of his country. He also accepted the chairmanship of a special committee on trade disputes just a few months before he passed away on 11 April 2004. MERVAT TALLAWY On 22 November 2000, Mervat Tallawy was appointed as executive secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) at the level of under secretary-general of the UN. Prior to her appointment, Tallawy was secretary-general of the National Council for Women in Egypt. She served as minister for Insurance and Social Affairs of Egypt (1997- 1999) after a long and distinguished career in foreign affairs and public service In her diverse work with the UN, Tallawy has played a special role in population and gender issues. She has held several leadership positions in UN inter-governmental bodies, including the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Cairo Conference on Population and Development. She has also served as deputy director to the UN Institute for Research and Training for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) (1982-1985). During her ambassadorship to Vienna, Tallawy was also Egypt's resident representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the UN Centre for Social and Humanitarian Affairs (1988-1991). IBRAHIM HELMY ABDEL RAHMAN The late Ibrahim Helmy Abdel Rahman became director general of the UNIDO in 1967. He orchestrated the positioning of UNIDO among the UN's 21 specialised agencies and insured the new agency's dynamic international participation in the industrialisation of developing countries seeking a better standard of living. His encouraging dialogue between international experts with national counterparts enabled the flow of knowledge which paved the way towards a meaningful transfer of technologies. Abdel Rahman was initially appointed in 1963 to head of a small centre for industrial development. He used this appointment to explore the needs of third world countries and the possibilities of their development through industrialisation. Abdel Rahman is considered the father of planning in Egypt where he established and headed the National Institute of Planning from 1960 to 1963 and later held the position of the minister of Planning in 1975. He was an early warner against the dangers of population explosion and the desperate need for Egypt to expand in desert communities to absorb at least 20 million inhabitants by the year 2000. ISMAIL SERAGELDIN Ismail Serageldin, currently the director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, is the man best known for brining the social dimension centre stage into development. Before taking on his current position he was nominated for the post of head of the UNESCO, a nomination supported by 31 Nobel laureates among many other prominent figures. He has served as vice-president of the World Bank for Special Programmes (since March 1998); chairman of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) since 1994; and chairman of the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest (CGAP) -- a micro-finance programme. He also heads or belongs to a number of advisory committees for academic research, scientific and international institutions. Starting the early 1970, Serageldin worked with the then president of the world Bank Macnamara towards introducing issues of population, health and nutrition onto the agenda. He became a division chief for technical assistance and special studies at the World Bank and for ten years worked on problems of education, producing a number of studies on literacy in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. In the 1980s, he shifted focus, to urban projects in Africa. Following the Rio Earth Summit, Serageldin was asked by the president of the World Bank to turn the issue of environmentally sustainable development into reality. For this purpose, the post of vice-president for environmentally and socially sustainable development was created. Serageldin was appointed to this particular UN agency in 1993. In 1998, he became the vice-president for special programmes, and is focusing on issues close to his heart through the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest, the Consultative Group on Agricultural Research, and the Consultative Group on Water. Serageldin has written over 200 articles and research papers, edited and co-edited about 35 books. Aida Gindy Aida Guindy was a veteran of social work, star of UNICEF and one of the faithful angels of this world. She was the first Egyptian woman to be granted a permanent position in the UN. She devoted her life to children and the cause of women across the world until her death in 2004. She is remembered by all who had the chance to have come her way. Abbas Ammar Born in 1907, Abbas Ammar was one of the earlier Egyptians to have joined the UN system. Through his top position in the International Labour Organisation (ILO), he was the artisan of the World Employment Programme. Ali Tewfik Shousha Having been among the founders of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and having directed its East Mediterranean Regional Office for eight years, Dr Ali Tewfik Shousha's rich life came to an unexpected and abrupt end in Geneva in 1964. Born in Cairo in 1891, he divided a good part of his life between work in his native country and work in centres of learning and research in the West. A foundation in his name and in honour of his memory was later established, one which promotes research in health-related issues in the East Mediterranean region. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Beyond also wishes to draw the attention of our distinguished readers to a younger generation of Egyptians who are currently at mid-career level in the UN system and who hold the promise of sustaining Egypt's flag high in global affairs. While it is not possible to list them all here, we are pleased to introduce five of them two of whom served as Egyptian diplomats before joining the UN system. These are Moez Doraid of the UNDP, and Sherif Saadallah of WIPO. Doraid is currently UN resident coordinator in Kuwait. He undertook a substantive role in the preparation of UNDP flagship, the Human Development Report since 1990. He has also managed major participatory poverty reduction programmes in Sudan including the war-stricken southern parts. He was instrumental in introducing to the Arab world the Information Communications Technology Development (ICTDAR) programme. Following last year's tsunami, he coordinated international assistance to the humanitarian relief effort as the UN humanitarian coordinator in the Maldives. Saadallah is executive director, Office of Strategic Use of Intellectual Property for Development (OSUIPD), World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva. The Alexandria-born Mona Hammam, is currently UN resident coordinator in Beirut, Lebanon and has also held senior positions with UNICEF, IFAD and WFP. She also played an important role in the UN Secretariat in New York as director of the Office of the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, and as associate director of the UN Development Group Office. A more recent entrant in the UN system, Heba El Kholy, has been approved as UN resident coordinator. She is currently serving in Sudan. Ms El Kholy is a well known member of the Egyptian NGO community, having held a senior position at the Ford Foundation and as co- founder of a leading NGO, namely The Association for the Development of Women (ADEW). Among the noteworthy younger Egyptians in international financial institutions, there is Neemat Shafik, vice-president of the World Bank, and currently on secondment to the British government helping with their overseas development programme. There are many more young Egyptians performing with distinction in the UN and other international organisations, in Egypt and elsewhere. We hope to shed more light on their work in coming issues of Beyond.
