The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Featured image via Arab News

Why is economics important? In a nutshell, you get to know and understand how societies, governments, businesses, households, and individuals distribute their resources. Lately, Egyptians are becoming prominent players in this particular field. Social media went crazy, when Egyptian-born British economist, Dame Nemat Talaat Shafik, was appointed as the new director of the London School of Economics in 2017. Last weekend, Arab News wrote about another fellow economist, who is now sharing a similar frenzy on social media, Egyptian-American chief economic adviser at Allianz, Dr Mohamed A. El-Erian, who is now the new president of Queens’ College, Cambridge!

Queens’ College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is one of the oldest and the largest colleges of the university and has some of the most recognisable buildings in Cambridge. The college’s alumni include heads of government and politicians from various countries, royalty, religious leaders, astronauts, and Oscar nominees. The current president of the college is senior economist, Baron Eatwell.

Now that we’re up to speed with the college’s esteemed status, let’s take a look at a short brief of El-Erian’s impressive resumé. As formerly mentioned, he is presently the chief economic adviser at Allianz, the corporate parent of PIMCO, where he served as CEO and co-chief investment officer up until 2014. Moreover, he is a columnist for Bloomberg View and a contributing editor to the Financial Times. You can find pieces from Reuters and CNBC in his repertoire.

In terms of previous accomplishments, starting with his educational background, El-Erian actually gained a scholarship to Queens’ College, Cambridge, where he received a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1980. He later obtained a master’s degree and a doctorate, also in economics, from St Antony’s College, Oxford. The American University in Cairo awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2011.

Later in life, he went on to achieve greater milestones. He served on the board of trustees of several educational institutions, was deputy director of the IMF, and was named four years in a row to Foreign Policy magazine’s list of “Top 100 Global Thinkers”. According to Egypt Independent, he also played a vital role in the economic domain following the global financial crisis in 2008 by originating a remarkable concept, entitled “New Normal”, that portrays expectations for the performance of advanced economies.

According to the college, El-Erian will succeed Lord John Eatwell in October 2020. We wish you the best of luck, Mr El-Erian, although we don’t think you will need it.