Summary: hard times for Egyptian antiquities, which have to earn their keep. A new cultural heritage deal with the Saudis – a challenge to Qatar.
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A UCL academic told me in late spring that the Qatar Foundation branch campus was winding down and would close in 2020. He commented that “Things have got rather nasty”. This followed decisions to close their 2 other foreign campuses in Australia and Kazakhistan. There are concerns that the London base has no intention of arranging any kind of transfer back to London or compensation for staff, many of whom moved with their families to Qatar. The source went on to predict that a new director was to be appointed with a remit to run down and close it. This despite the appointment of Sheikha Hind bint Hamad as the new President of the Qatar Foundation; she took her M.A. in human rights at UCL in London.
Sheikha Mayassa’s huge budget for museums and art has suffered a hefty cut and many qualified staff laid off (though not on the scale of Qatar Petroleum that has sacked 6,000).