Shahira Fahmy has been appointed as the first Egyptian to serve as Jury President of the Arab World Institute Design Award 2026, marking a significant milestone in her professional journey. She will join an international panel of architects, editors, curators, and cultural leaders evaluating contributions from across the Arab world. The programme, organised by the Institut du Monde Arabe, highlights emerging and established designers with an emphasis on material research, craftsmanship, innovation, and contemporary design thinking.
The 2026 edition invites submissions created between September 2024 and April 2026, spanning four key categories: Emerging Talent, Contemporary Craftsmanship, Impact Award in partnership with Arab Bank Switzerland, and the Grand Prize for established architects and designers. The jury will assess how projects respond to environmental concerns, cultural continuity, evolving production techniques, and regional material exploration. Fahmy noted that design in the region continues to reflect memory, place-based knowledge, and adaptive thinking rooted in lived experience.
SFA – Shahira Fahmy Architects, founded in Cairo in 2005 and expanded to Dubai in 2024, works across architecture, heritage restoration, and urban planning, with projects in AlUla including restoration work and hospitality developments. Her academic engagements include Harvard University fellowships and teaching roles internationally globally recognized
