Marshall Memorial Fellowship Alumni Appointed Key Ministerial Positions in New French Cabinet

The German Marshall Fund congratulates Emmanuel Macron (MMF, 2006) and Najat Vallaud-Belkacem (MMF, 2006), appointed minister of the economy, the industry, and the digital economy, and minister of education and research, respectively, in the new French government.

The appointments were announced on Tuesday, August 26 when President François Hollande approved the new government.

Macron most recently served as deputy secretary general of the Élysée and economic advisor to the president, positions he left in June 2014. He began his career as an investment banker at Rothschild. 

Vallaud-Belkacem becomes the first female minister of education in France’s history. Prior to this appointment, she served as spokesman for the government and, most recently, as minister for women’s rights, youth, and sports in the previous cabinet.

Both ministers were awarded the Marshall Memorial Fellowship, the flagship leadership development program of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, in 2006. In this program, they participated in an intensive learning and networking experience designed to foster collaboration, build personal capacity and prompt innovative thinking and problem-solving. During the fellowship, they were immersed in communities across the Atlantic through travel and study.

The Marshall Memorial Fellowship builds capacity for transatlantic understanding and cooperation among emerging leaders from the United States and Europe. Approximately 75 awards are made annually to emerging leaders from across the United States and Europe. For more information, please visit the Marshall Memorial Fellowship website.