During a roundtable discussion hosted by the US Embassy in Cairo, the deputy explained that the United States has provided $150 million to support the preservation of antiquities across all of Egypt, from Alexandria to Luxor, and passing through Cairo and Giza.

He noted that an announcement will be made on Tuesday at the Coptic Museum to launch a project to digitize the Egyptian Museum and several other museums, in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, to combat smuggling Egyptian antiquities and the illegal trade in them.

Mansour explained that Egypt was the first Arab country to sign an agreement with the United States in 2016 to preserve Egyptian heritage, a treaty that facilitates the return of stolen antiquities from Egypt to the Egyptian authorities.

Under this agreement, about 5,000 artefacts have been returned to the Egyptian authorities.

He stated that the United States’ interest in preserving Egyptian antiquities stems from its respect for Egyptian civilization and awareness of its role in promoting Egypt as a tourism hub and supporting the Egyptian economy, especially since tourism is an important source of foreign currency.

Regarding the cultural and educational exchange between the two countries, Rafik indicated that there are 27,000 graduates of these programmes, which include scholarships such as the Fulbright programme and sports exchange programmes, and exchanges in the field of arts.

He added that the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the US Department of State offers many learning opportunities within the United States, noting that this year will mark the 75th anniversary of the Fulbright programme through which thousands of Egyptians have studied.

Regarding the nature of the support provided to Egyptian girls in education and scholarships, Rafik said that his country is working with the government to develop education for girls in science, technology, engineering, and entrepreneurship.

This is done through assistance programmes for businesswomen to establish their projects or develop existing ones, aiming at helping women become active members of society by increasing their income, creating more job opportunities, and contributing to the economy.