The ambassador of Spain to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Antonio Álvarez Barthe, and the president of the Sharjah Book Authority, Ahmed Al Ameri, signed on Monday, May 24, an agreement for the participation of Spain as guest of honor in the Sharjah International Book Fair 2021, during an act that was attended by the general director of the Book and Promotion of Reading of the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Spain, María José Gálvez.
This meeting, which has been organized since 1982 and is the largest in the Arab world, will take place from November 3 to 13, 2021, coinciding with the World’s Fair in Dubai. This fact will reinforce the visibility of Spanish writers and publishers, since they will also participate in the Spanish pavilion of the exhibition, where literary activities will be carried out.
The event has a section for publishers and another for writers and with a strong presence of children’s and young people’s books. The 2019 edition, the last one entirely in person, welcomed 1,874 publishers from 77 countries and 2.3 million visitors who had access to some twenty million books on display.
Spain, as the guest of honor, will have a pavilion in whose construction the Spanish Business Council in the UAE and the Turespaña Office in Abu Dhabi will collaborate and where Spanish publications will be displayed and will be attended by creators, representatives of the Spanish book sector and publishers. .
Two professional programs will also be held in parallel: the Conference of the American Library Association (ALA), which will have the experience of librarians from the region, the United States and other countries, and where the libraries of the guest of honor country will participate to strengthen literary relations and ties between the two countries; in addition, the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) Publishers Conference, with seminars on Arab and international publishing business, the Matchmaking Program and opportunities to apply for the SIBF translation scholarship. The guest of honor, together with its represented publishers, will have the opportunity to participate in this conference.
The Fair will have the support of the Government of Spain through the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and European Union, TurEspaña or Cultural Action (AC / E).
Fountain: Ministry of Culture and Sports of Spain
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