Culture Minister Farouk Hosni announced on Saturday the winners of the annual state merit and incentive awards for 1997.
The merit awards for arts went to poet Ahmed Abdel-Moeti Hegazi, renowned novelist Bahaa Taher and university professor emeritus Fatma Moussa. The merit awards for social sciences were won by Higher Education Minister Moufid Shehab and Al-Awqaf (religious endowments) Minister Hamdi Zaqzouk.
Ten writers, artists, poets, university professors and cabinet ministers were given merit awards for lifetime achievement.
Four years ago, the Higher Council of Culture announced it would increase the monetary value of the merit award from LE5,000 to LE25,000, but approval from the Ministry of Finance has not yet been granted. Hosni said the increase would be forthcoming next year.
The incentive awards went to 12 intellectuals, including Cairo University professor of political science Hassan Nafaa for his book The Reform of the United Nations.
Candidates for the merit awards are nominated by universities and the Arabic Language Academy as well as by other literary and artistic institutions. Candidates for the incentive awards nominate themselves. The winners are chosen by the Higher Council for Culture, an affiliate of the Ministry of Culture. The council can grant up to 10 merit awards and 18 incentive awards annually.
