What to Expect From the New Azza Fahmy School of Crafts & Creativity
Operating under the Azza Fahmy Foundation, the school will train a new generation of Egyptian artisans, designers and educators.
In Old Cairo’s Darb Al-Labbana neighbourhood, the Azza Fahmy Foundation is preparing to launch the Azza Fahmy School of Crafts and Creativity, a new educational hub dedicated to traditional craftsmanship. The project follows a recently announced partnership with the Urban Development Fund (UDF) to revitalise the district and establish an integrated cultural and training centre.
The initiative builds on more than a decade of work by the foundation’s Education & Development Arm, which has trained thousands in traditional jewellery-making and heritage crafts. As Executive Director Yasmine El Hamalawy explains, the school represents a natural next step. "Most people know Azza Fahmy for design, but our work runs even deeper," she tells CairoScene.
That mission widens through the new school, which aims to position craft as both a cultural resource and a contemporary economic engine. "With the Azza Fahmy School of Crafts and Creativity, we are expanding this mission to ensure craftsmanship remains a living source of pride, innovation, and sustainable livelihoods for generations to come," El Hamalawy says. The school is planned to be a space that will unite design education, craft mastery, and entrepreneurship to train emerging artisans and designers across Egypt and the region.
Set within a restored heritage site, the school will be part of a broader complex featuring artisan workshops, lecture halls, artist-in-residence studios, and spaces to showcase and sell heritage products. Its placement in Darb Al-Labbana is intentional, anchoring the project in one of Cairo’s most historically rich districts. "Being in Darb Al-Labbana places the school at the heart of Cairo’s living heritage, and as part of the Urban Development Fund’s revitalization of the district, we are transforming restored spaces into vibrant centres for learning, research, and cultural exchange," El Hamalawy sats.
Beyond preservation, the foundation sees the school as a catalyst for new forms of creative industry. "For Egypt and the wider region, this marks a shift from craft as tradition to craft as a driver of cultural and economic power," El Hamalawy explains. The goal, she adds, is to elevate regional craftsmanship on the global stage, ensuring heritage continues to evolve while generating opportunity and sustainable livelihoods.
