Sharjah enhances the presence of Arabic literature globally from a gate "Bologna exhibition for child book"

Bologna – Italy on April 4 / WAM / The Sharjah Book Authority concluded yesterday its active participation in the “Bologna Child Book Fair 2025”, which is one of the most prominent international activities specialized in child literature, in the presence of a delegation representing a group of institutions and cultural authorities concerned with the publishing industry in the Emirate of Sharjah.

The participation emphasized the established position of Sharjah as a central world center in supporting the publishing industry and enhancing cultural exchange between peoples.

Participation was a main station within the authority’s efforts to consolidate the presence of Arab literature in global markets, expanding opportunities for cooperation with international publishers, and introducing the qualitative initiatives launched by Sharjah to support the publishing sector, as the authority presented during the exhibition an integrated interactive program that reviewed the latest projects and initiatives aimed at developing creative content and enhancing translation and joint publishing opportunities.

On the importance of participation, His Excellency Ahmed bin Rakad Al -Amiri, CEO of the Sharjah Book Authority, said: Sharjah continues the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah and his comprehensive cultural vision, consolidating its presence in formulating the future of publishing and knowledge, noting that this prominent presence in international forums reflects the qualitative efforts led by Sheikha Badour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairman of the Council of the Sharjah Authority For the book, which works to enhance the position of Arab publishing at the global level and open new horizons for Emirati and Arab publishers.

Al -Amiri added that the Bologna exhibition of the child’s book is not just an opportunity to display the publications, but rather a strategic platform to support publishers, enhance cooperation with international partners, and highlight the initiatives and programs that Sharjah provides that contribute to developing the publishing sector and enriching Arab literary content with new opportunities to spread and expand.

The authority presented in its pavilion participating in the exhibition an integrated integrated program that included a variety of workshops, including an interactive creative workshop presented by Italian artist Eva Montanari, in which she used coal and fingerprint techniques to produce collective artwork that includes a group of integrated small paintings that combined an innovative visual image of a group of living organisms, and the workshop witnessed a wide participation of paintings Italian women, as it included an introductory introduction to the “Sharjah Features Exhibition for Child Books”, which this year completes its 13th session, and the invitation was also invited to present their work and participate in the next year 2026 session, which enhances cultural and artistic exchange between global and local talents.

Italian actress Irene Benzi presented a second workshop that focused on exploring natural elements such as tree leaves and dried fruits, and dealt with ways to benefit from her visual capabilities to produce an art book without the need to use words, and shed light on how to employ nature elements in visual arts, which allowed the participants a unique opportunity to explore the relationship between the environment and art.

The Sharjah Book Authority cooperated with the “Emirati Publishers Association” to sponsor a selection of the winners of the Sharjah Fund for Publishing “Publishing” with the aim of enabling them to enhance their presence on the global scene and benefit from the opportunities available in the exhibition, as the list of the winners participating both Dalal Al -Jabri from the Hiz Hazaya Publishing House and Fatima Al Hammadi from the “Sahhab” for publishing house “Cyrus” for publication.

This participation allowed the winners the opportunity to communicate with publishers, literary agents, painters and publishing rights experts, which helped them exchange information and discuss concluding deals related to publishing, distribution and cooperation in joint publishing projects in addition to exploring future strategic partnerships in global markets, and this experience had a positive impact in enhancing their understanding of international publishing standards in the field of children’s books, which contributes to developing their books and ensuring their growth according to global levels with international levels Maintaining the distinguished Emirati identity.

The emirate’s pavilion participating in the exhibition reviewed a set of publications of children’s books and systems of individual and group meetings between Emirati, Italian and international publishers to discuss ways of joint cooperation in the field of books in general and the child’s book in particular.

The Sharjah Literary Agency also reviewed its efforts to enhance the presence of Arabic literature on the international scene by translating Arabic books into various foreign languages, as well as the strategic partnership that it concluded with the Sharjah Fund for Publishing Sustainability, “Publishing” with the aim of enabling new publishers and enhancing their presence at the global level by facilitating their access to translation and publishing rights.

Visitors to the emirate’s pavilion are acquainted with the “International Prize for Arab Child Literature”, which was previously known as the “Etisalat Prize for Child Literature”, which is held in partnership between the “UAE Council for Advistors’ Books” and “END” in the framework of a strategy to enhance the presence of Arab literature for children and adolescents globally and highlight the creations of writers, publishers and Arab painters and open new horizons for cooperation in this field.

Sharjah reviewed the investment opportunities provided by the “Free Zone of Sharjah Publishing City”, providing visitors with the exhibition, the opportunity to identify the integrated infrastructure that contributes to facilitating the establishment of companies as well as supportive services that guarantee the growth and expansion of publishers ’projects at the global level from Sharjah.

The commission shed light on the activities and initiatives organized throughout the year, led by the “Sharjah International Book Fair”, “Sharjah Reading Festival for Children”, in addition to accompanying events such as “Publishers Conference”, “Conference of Distributors”, “Libraries Conference” and “Sharjah Animation Conference” in addition to the “Tarjman Award” and “Translation Grant” that supports the global translation movement.

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