Above: Haroon Hakimi (’20) (center) at a ceremony introducing him as Afghanistan’s Deputy Minister for Culture and Arts.
Haroon Hakimi, who received his Executive Master of Arts in National Security Affairs from IWP in 2020, has just been appointed Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth and Tourism of Afghanistan.
In this position, Haroon’s portfolio covers the culture and arts of the whole country of Afghanistan, and he serves as the first deputy to the Minister. He began his work there on May 10.
He commented: “My goals are to preserve and protect the rich, diverse, and ancient heritage of the country, as this has been a crossroads of civilizations and a hub for the people for thousands of years.” He hopes to adjust the culture in keeping with the needs of the time, to encourage public sentiment for peace and against extremism by keeping alive people’s historical memory of the nation and their ancestors, and to enhance Afghan cultural diplomacy, as he has served in and studied that field for over a decade.
“I will do my best to revive the arts of a country affected by decades of war and forgotten for a long time. Promoting the narrative of peaceful coexistence through arts is one of my main goals for this position,” said Haroon.
His IWP education will be helpful in his work: “We are a country suffering from insurgencies, and my portfolio covers the field where minds and hearts are to be targeted. I was equipped with the knowledge and strategies for being influential in that field at the IWP.”
Haroon further commented: “I sincerely thank H.E. President Ashraf Ghani for appointing me to serve as the Deputy Minister for Culture and Arts. My promise is to serve my country.”
Read more about Haroon’s experience at IWP
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