Director of Sharjah International Book Fair Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), one of the world’s four largest book fairs, has announced the planned activities for its 32nd round during a press conference held at Al Qasba Theatre on 23rd of October. Scheduled to take place from 6th to 16th November, the fair will feature a diverse range of programmes and activities, with hundreds of thousands of titles on display, covering various subjects in literature, science, knowledge, culture, and philosophy.

The press conference was attended by H.E. Abdullah Al Owais, Chairman of the Department of Culture and Information and H.E. Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Director of Sharjah International Book Fair. The Fair’s management revealed the details of existing and new associated activities and announced the Guest of Honour, volume of participation, the countries which will participate for the first time, number of exhibitors and the cultural awards which will be distributed during the Fair as well as a number of related topics.

A live performance was held on the side lines of the press conference, supervised by Emirati actor Abdullah Abu Aabed, which focused on the role of family in encouraging  reading and emphasised the importance of the family as the child’s ‘first school’. The goal of the show was to deliver the message that instilling the love of reading in the hearts of children must be undertaken by families first and that taking care to invest in a home library is a major contributor to developing a long lasting love of reading among children.

SIBF is expected to attract 1010 exhibitors from 53 countries, including 23 Arab countries and 26 non-Arab countries, with Portugal, New Zealand, Hungary and GB participating for the first time.  Participants will exhibit 405,000 titles, which is 20,000 titles more than the number of books showcased the previous year. Books on display cover a range of different disciplines in the field of science and knowledge. There will be dictionaries, literary and cultural books and children’s books in more than 180 languages. The Fair management also announced a line-up of over 580 activities scheduled throughout the Fair’s 11 day duration.  Lebanon will be present as the Guest of Honour in recognition of their significant contribution to Arab culture.

Speaking on the occasion, H.E. Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Director of Sharjah International Book Fair, said: “Following months of dedicated efforts and impressive cultural tours around the world, we can say that preparations are in full swing to open the 32nd Sharjah International Book Fair. The continuous successes and rising popularity that SIBF is gaining would not have been possible without the unlimited support of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, whose directives serve as guiding reference that we use to enable the event to maintain this high ranking position.”

Al Ameri added: “We have a lot of surprises for our audiences from across the world, in terms of cultural, children’s and cooking activities in addition to the other associated activities and volume of participation, which reflects  SIBF’s position as a landmark event in the UAE and Sharjah. We are confident that these surprises will be well received by the public and will contribute to further developing the Fair and its role in supporting cultural life in Sharjah and preserving the Emirate’s identity.”

Al Ameri expressed his appreciation for the immense efforts exerted by sponsors and strategic partners, such as Etisalat, Strategic Visions magazine, Sharjah Media Corporation, Sharjah Municipality and Sharjah Media Centre. He praised their eagerness to help in making the event a success, and as an evidence of the cultural development in the country.

SIBF’s management revealed the professional activities, which have been designed to increase the experience levels of Emirati and Arab publishers. The professional activities for 2013 will take place over 2 days from 3rd of November, in association with New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies and with participation of over 300 publishers from around the world.
The 31st Sharjah International Book Fair was held from 7th to 17th of November 2012, with 942 publishers from 62 countries, including 22 Arab and 40 non-Arab countries and with 24 countries who participated for the first time.