Hisham Kandil, Egypt’s Youngest PM
Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has asked Hisham Kandil (born 1962), a relatively young government minister little known outside the country, to form a new government.
Kandil wears a beard as a sign of religious piety, one of Egypt’s first ministers to do so, but has no known affiliation with any Islamist political organization.
A spokesman for President Morsi described Kandil as an “independent patriot” who had not belonged to a party either before or after the popular uprising against Mubarak, according to the state news agency.
The impressions of the revolutionary, national powers and public figures on the social networks, Facebook and Twitter, contradicted over President Mohamed Morsi’s decision of naming Dr Hesham Kandil as Egypt’s Prime Minister.
The former MP Mustafa Al Naggar said qualification is the main factor for judging any person takes over the responsibility, not his appearance or belonging. It is too early to issue final judges without watching actions.
Hazem Abdel Azim, political activist, said assigning Hesham Kandil is an opportunity for youth and hope in change.
Ayman Nour, chairman of Ghad El-Thawra Party, said choosing Hesham Kandil as prime misister is unexpected suriprise. It is a return to technocrat cabinet.
Education:
Kandil graduated from the Faculty of Engineering in 1984, went on to earn a master degree in 1988 from Utah State University and a doctorate in irrigation in 1993 from North Carolina State University.
Early Careers:
He was appointed minister of irrigation and water resources in July 2011, Essam Sharaf’s Cabinet.
Kandil was the Chairman of the Nile sector for approximately 40 days then he was assigned with the portfolio of the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation in the government of Kamal Ganzouri.
Kandil worked as chief water resources engineer at the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Tunisia.
He worked on Nile Basin water initiatives. He is president of the African Ministers Council on Water.
He also served as office director for irrigation minister from 1999 to 2005. He also worked at irrigation ministry’s National Water Research Centre for the period of 1995-2005.
He served as the observer of the joint Egyptian-Sudanese Authority of Nile water.
Accomplishments:
Dr. Kandil has written a number of papers, including co-authoring an economic policy brief on food security in Africa for the AfDB.
Awards:
Kandil was awarded the Order of Republic – the Second Class in 1995. He was also awarded the professorship in 2002.
On 15 July Kandil travelled with President Morsi to the African Union summit in Ethiopia. The trip sought to rekindle Cairo’s relationship with its African neighbours after years of neglect under former president Hosni Mubarak.
Sources:
www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Publications/Afric Econo brief (Food security)_Africa Econo brief (Food security)2.pdf
http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/48551.aspx
http://amwalalghad.com/en/news/egypt-news/6824-egypts-morsi-asks-hesham-qandil-to-form-new-govt.html
