The 74-year-old Head of State told the faithful after his son's appointment was announced to rapturous applause from the 6,000 delegates assembled for the party's first congress in a decade. "We must give young people the opportunity to shoulder leadership responsibilities."

Mubarak has led Egypt since his predecessor Anwar Sadat was assassinated by Islamic militants in 1981. Now speculation has grown that after two decades in power, the aging president may be ready to hand over the reins. Hosni Mubarak was re-elected NDP chairman by a massive show of hands.

Gamal Mubarak was already a member of the NDP secretariat - he was named head of the party's youth and development committee in 2000 - and analysts said his advance through the ranks is being used as a springboard to legitimize his succession to the presidency.

A creation of Anwar Sadat, the NDP variously claims between two and five million members, and is by far Egypt's largest political party. In the last parliamentary elections, it won 388 out of 444 elected seats, with many party members running as independents against official NDP candidates. However, political observers say the NDP stands for very little other than loyalty to the President.

Gamal Mubarak has declared in speeches that the party needs "new blood" to replace time-servers who obstruct political and economic reform without paying attention to citizens' concerns. He is the younger son of President Mubarak, and is portrayed as the spearhead of a younger, reformist spirit in the NDP's aging leadership. As head of the Future Generation Foundation, he tried to help young Egyptians cope with the modern world. In an interview published by the English-language Al-Ahram weekly last year, he said: "We need to explain to the youth what is going on around them, how they can benefit from these changes and be part of them. The best insurance for stability and continued development is an inclusive discourse involving as many people as possible." At the time he refuted rumors he was being groomed for President. "Frankly speaking, my becoming President ... never occurred to me and is not an issue on my father's mind."

However, his appointment as Political Secretary will enable him to take part in setting the party's political agenda and to review draft legislation before it is submitted to the People's Assembly.

The present NDP leadership consists of President Hosni Mubarak, party Chairman and Information Minister Safwat al-Sherif (the new Secretary General) and Kamal al-Shazly, the Assistant Secretary General. All three men are a generation older than Gamal. In the official list of appointments published this week, Gamal's name appeared immediately after Shazly's.

Gamal, a 39-year-old bachelor, has been a member of the NDP Secretariat since he was named head of the Youth and Development committee in 2000. As head of the Future Generation Foundation for some years, he oversees programs to prepare young people for the job market and increase their political awareness. He was Vice President for corporate finance in the Europe, Middle East and Africa division of Bank of America International in London from 1988 to 1994, when he became Executive Director of MedInvest Associations Ltd. He holds an MBA degree from the American University in Cairo and is also active in several non-profit organizations, including one dealing with low-income housing.