The opening of Egypt’s Grand Museum, which is spread across 117 acres, was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and will now open in the second half of 2022, said the Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

The construction work was now complete and work on the display areas was ongoing, added Mostafa Waziri, speaking at the Egypt Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai on Sunday, reported Emirates news agency WAM.

The museum is billed as the world’s largest museum of Egyptian civilisation near the iconic Giza Pyramids.

Waziri added: "We can confirm that we have completed work on the exhibits that will be displayed at the Grand Museum. We are on track to open the museum in the second half of 2022."

During the symposium on excavations in Egypt, Waziri reviewed recent discoveries and revealed more projects to excavate ancient Egyptian treasures.

He said: "What we see above the surface of the earth in Egypt does not exceed 40 per cent of the antiquities contained below the ground. There are more than 50 Egyptian missions working at various sites, and discoveries in Luxor, Minya, Sohag, Saqqara, Cairo and the Lower Egypt region have surprised the world."

Waziri also revealed how Egyptian teams managed to restore very important statues in the Luxor area, including a statue of King Ramses II, who ruled Egypt for 66 years between 1279 and 1213 BC. Egypt unveiled this statue, which is 12 metres high and weighs 65 tonnes, in April 2017 as part of a major restoration campaign in Luxor.