The UAE Embassy in Cairo and the National Library organize a symposium"Reading in the age of artificial intelligence"
Cairo, January 27 / WAM / The Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Cairo, in cooperation with the Archives and the National Library, organized a symposium on reading in the age of artificial intelligence, on the sidelines of the fifty-seventh session of the Cairo International Book Fair, whose activities are continuing.
His Excellency Hamad Obaid Al Zaabi, UAE Ambassador to Egypt, Permanent Representative of the State to the League of Arab States, and the writer specializing in children’s literature, Samah Abu Bakr Ezzat, participated in the symposium, which was held on the National Archives and Library platform at the exhibition, in the presence of a number of intellectuals, media figures, and exhibition goers.
His Excellency Hamad Obaid Al Zaabi stressed that reading was and will remain the basis for building a conscious human being, pointing out that artificial intelligence and modern technology represent supportive tools for enhancing knowledge, not a substitute for reading or the human mind.
He stressed the depth of cultural and cognitive ties between the UAE and the Arab Republic of Egypt, stressing Egypt’s pioneering role in the publishing and reading movement.
He reviewed the pioneering Emirati model in consolidating the culture of reading, referring to the National Reading Law and the designation of the Reading Month in March of each year, in addition to the Arab Reading Challenge initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, “may God protect him.” He praised the broad Egyptian participation in this civilizational challenge.
He praised the cultural vision whose foundations were laid by the founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, stressing that the book was and remains an essential pillar in building civilization and humanity, citing his immortal saying, “The book is the vessel of knowledge and civilization.”
He stressed that this vision was continued and strengthened with the support of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, “may God protect him,” as culture turned into a state project, reading into a civilized policy, and real investment into investing in the human mind and its ability to create the future.
For her part, writer Samah Abu Bakr Ezzat said that reading represents the child’s mind’s true passport to the future, stressing that the book remains the safest friend for building the child’s conscience and protecting him from the distraction of the virtual world.
She added that entering the era of artificial intelligence does not mean dispensing with the paper book, but rather requires developing new tools that address the generation of children through innovative media, stressing that artificial intelligence lacks the emotional sincerity and human dimension that the writer puts in his text, which makes children’s literature based primarily on the human touch that cannot be replaced by algorithms.
- For more: Follow Khaleejion 24 Arabic, Khaleejion 24 English, Khaleejion 24 Live, and for social media follow us on Facebook and Twitter
