When an American, British, Australian or other foreign citizen is in trouble overseas, their respective governments tend to take immediate action to support the citizen in any way possible. For many years, the Egyptian passport was unlikely to provide such protection. However, one Egyptian Minister is making sure that no Egyptian is left forgotten. In September 2015, Nabila Makram was appointed Egypt’s Minister of Emigration and Egyptian Expatriate Affairs. While many in the media appeared to focus on the fact that Makram wore a short-sleeved black top to her appointment ceremony, the new Minister had already started work on her plan to bring Egyptian expatriates closer to home. “The Ministry of Emigration was cancelled 20 years ago. Back then, it was an honorary Ministry for Egyptian expatriates and was part of the Ministry of Labour,” explains Makram to Egyptian Streets on the sidelines of a recent visit to Australia where she met with members of the Egyptian community and top Australian officials and attended the opening of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Australia’s Eporo Tower. “The President [Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi] believed in the power of Egyptian expatriates. Wherever he went,…
The Egyptian Minister Giving a Voice to Egyptians Living Abroad
September 19, 2017
