The honours, conferred by Emperor Naruhito, were granted to Sameh Shoukry, Egypt’s former foreign minister, and Mohamed Maait, former finance minister, the Japanese embassy in Cairo announced on Friday.
Shoukry received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun for his role in advancing strategic cooperation during his tenure from 2014 to 2023, a period that saw Egypt and Japan elevate their partnership to a Strategic Partnership level.
He helped organize multiple high-level exchanges, including President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s two visits to Japan in 2019—one for the G20 summit and another for the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7)—moves that deepened diplomatic coordination between the two countries.
Maait was honoured with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star for his contribution to financial and health-sector reforms. As finance minister from 2018 to 2024, he oversaw Egypt’s first-ever issuance of Samurai Bonds. yen-denominated bonds worth 60 billion yen ($400 million) launched in March 2022.
He also helped advance Egypt’s Universal Health Insurance System (UHIS), a flagship national reform supported by Japan since its inception, aimed at expanding access to affordable healthcare.
In a statement, the Japanese embassy praised the two former ministers’ “significant achievements” and said it looked forward to building on their legacy to further deepen ties between the two nations.
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