Dirk Louis Maria Van Mechelen (born 27 August 1957 in Kapellen) is the Flemish

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

 minister of Finance and Budget and Town and Country Planning. He is a member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats.

Education

He obtained a degree in history from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

The Katholieke Universiteit Leuven is a Dutch-speaking university in Flanders, Belgium.It is located at the centre of the historic town of Leuven, and is a prominent part of the city, home to the university since 1425...

 (Leuven

Leuven

Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...

, Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

) in 1980.

Career

He started his professional career at Buchmann Optical Industries in Kapellen, the company of Jacky Buchmann. In 1982, he started his political career in the municipal council of Kapellen.

After the regional elections of 1999 he became Flemish minister of Town and Country Planning, Economy and Media. Since 2001 he is the mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of Kapellen.

After the regional elections of 2004

Belgian regional elections, 2004

On June 13, 2004, regional elections were held in Belgium, to choose representatives in the regional councils of the Flemish Parliament, the Walloon Parliament, the Brussels Parliament and the German-speaking Community of Belgium...

 he became Flemish minister of Finance and Budget and Town and Country Planning till 2009.

External links

• Dirk Van Mechelen (Official website)