Hajar Sa’deddin; First Woman Who Headed Egypt’s Quran Radio
A graduate of Al-Azhar Islamic University, Hajar was appointed to the post in 1997 after Abdul Samad al-Dasoughi retired as the director of the radio.
Prior to that, she would produce a program titled “Religion and Life”, which featured interpretation of the Quran’s verses from the viewpoint of religion and sciences.
She also served as the deputy head of the radio station.
The program was aired on the Quran Radio in the holy month of Ramadan and attracted a large number of listeners.
Hajar says she is not the first woman who worked as presenter on the Quran Radio, adding that before her, Fatima Taher was a radio presenter at the radio station in 1979.
Earlier, she notes, there had been a ban on broadcasting women’s voice on the Quran Radio.
Today, there are many women working at the radio in different capacities, she points out.
Referring to the history of the Quran Radio, Hajar says it was founded in March 1964 at the order of then president of Egypt Gamal Abdel Nasser.
The first Quran recitations broadcast on the radio had been collected by Sheikh al-Husari, she says, adding that later such masters as Abdul Basit Abdul Samad and Mahmoud Ali al-Bana continued his path.
Hajar was named the peace ambassador of the United Nations in 1996 for her role in elevating women’s position in the Arab world.
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