Gharib, the former Egypt midfielder and assistant coach, succeeds American Bob Bradley, whose contract expired at the end of the country's unsuccessful 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign this month.
"The Egypt football association (EFA) board of directors decided during a meeting on Wednesday to appoint Shawki Gharib as coach of the national team," spokesman Azmy Megahed told Reuters, without giving details about the length of the contract.
Gharib, 54, had taken over as coach of Egyptian domestic club Ismaily only last month.
He told Reuters: "I am happy with the confidence of the EFA on me. I will do my best to make the fans happy and to build a team capable of achieving the ambitions of the Egyptian people."
As a player, Gharib won the African Nations Cup with Egypt in 1986, and again as assistant coach to Hassan Shehata in 2006, 2008 and 2010.
(Reporting by Mohamed Sadek, editing by Stephen Wood)
