The European Union (EU) has launched a three-year project valued at EUR 3.1 mn for the transformation of the Egyptian Museum of Cairo (EMC), west Cairo, as part of EU’s efforts and continuous process of building a sense of community and strengthening the civil society, Invest-Gate reports.

The project, which is the first phase of a bigger development project that would result in remarkable upgrades to the EMC, is aimed at providing “a unique collaboration” between the EMC, Egypt’s antiquities ministry, and the EU in the fields of museology, Egyptology, archaeology, archaeometry, and cultural heritage management, according to a press release on January 27.

“For a period of 36 months, a consortium of European Museums, namely: the Museo Egizio , together with the Louvre, the British Museum, the Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung Berlin, the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (Leiden), the BBR – Bundesamt für Bauwesen und Raumordnung, the IFAO – Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale, and the ICA – Istituto Centrale per l’Archeologia will assist the Egyptian Museum in the adoption of significant new display areas and in outlining detailed strategic vision (Masterplan) for the future,” read the statement.

“Each museum partner will bring specific experience and skills to the project, ensuring the EMC benefits from the best and most recent approaches in global museology. The project will also present input on new approaches that could be adopted to the collections and exhibitions. From another side, the project aims to help the EMC be recognized as a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO,” it added.

In its statement, EU stated that the project’s action plan will focus on the redisplay of entrance galleries on the EMC’s ground floor, the outlining of the museum’s masterplan, and the showcasing of treasures from the Royal Tombs of Tanis.

On his part, Ambassador of the EU to Egypt Ivan Surkoš said Egypt has a rich history of decades maintaining a prominently unique culture that is globally inspiring, adding, “We are proud of having the privilege to support the collaboration and exchange of expertise between Europe and Egypt in the areas of Egyptology, museology and the management of cultural heritage.”

Surkoš pointed out that through this project, “a consortium of European museums will work with their Egyptian colleagues to create a strategic vision for the Egyptian Museum of Cairo, addressing collection management and conservation, audience engagement, public programming and communication, income generation, and facilities management.”

Additionally, he underlined that the transformation project is deemed beneficial as it will improve the visitors’ experience, attract more national and international visitors, and increase the economic impact of the museum. It is also set to derive further economic benefits via the implementation of income generation programs by the antiquities ministry.