H.E. Dr. Mahmoud Abu-Zeid, President of Arab Water Council, former Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun from the government of Japan. He attended the Presentation Ceremony held at the Imperial Palace on November 5^th, 2010.

H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid served as a researcher and a technical officer in the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation in Egypt (Former ministry of Public Works and Water Resources) for 34 years starting 1963, and as the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation from 1997 to 2009. H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid has enhanced the cooperation on water resources between Egypt and Japan to a new height and contributed to disseminating Japanese irrigation technique to the Arab and Africa region. Because of these achievements and contributions, Dr. Abu-Zeid was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, which is the highest decoration from the Japanese Government.

In the bestowment ceremony, His Majesty the Emperor first bestowed the Order on H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid, and H.E. Mr. Naoto Kan, Prime Minister of Japan, then conferred the Certificate. H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid was honored with an audience with H.M. the Emperor together with other recipients and their spouses.

Preceding the ceremony, H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid met H.E. Mr. Michihiko Kano, the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and discussed the promotion of cooperation on irrigation in the Arab and Africa region.

H.E. Dr. Abu-Zeid currently acts as President of Arab Water Council. He also assumes important posts such as Honorary President of the World Water Council, Member of the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, Chairman of the African Water Facility Council, and Chairman of Board of Directors of Arab Water Academy. As leading expert on effective usage of water resources and water dispute settlement, Dr. Abu-Zeid is actively working not only in Egypt but also in regional and international fora. Reflecting the bestowal of the order, Dr. Abu-Zeid commented, “I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all my Japanese colleagues and friends who have worked with and helped me."