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CAIRO / WAM
The Embassy of the UAE in Cairo, in cooperation with the National Library and Archives, organised a seminar on reading in the age of AI, on the sidelines of the 57th Cairo International Book Fair, which continues its activities.
The seminar, held at the National Library and Archives platform at the fair, was attended by Hamad Obaid Al-Zaabi, UAE Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Permanent Representative of the UAE to the Arab League, and the writer specialising in children’s literature, Samah Abu Bakr Ezzat, in the presence of a number of intellectuals, media professionals, and visitors to the fair.
Al-Zaabi said that reading has been and will remain the foundation for building an aware human being, pointing out that artificial intelligence and modern technology are supportive tools to enhance knowledge, not a substitute for reading or the human mind.
He emphasised the depth of cultural and intellectual ties between the UAE and the Arab Republic of Egypt, affirming Egypt’s pioneering role in the movement of publishing and reading.
He reviewed the pioneering Emirati model in consolidating a culture of reading, referring to the National Policy for Reading 2026, the designation of March each year as official Reading Month, in addition to the Arab Reading Challenge initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and praised the wide Egyptian participation in this cultural challenge.
He highlighted the cultural vision established by the late Founding Father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, affirming that the book has always been and remains a fundamental pillar in building civilisation and humanity, citing his immortal saying, “The book is the vessel of knowledge and civilisation.”
He confirmed that this vision has continued and been strengthened with the support of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, where culture has become a national project, reading a civilisational policy, and true investment is investment in the human mind and its ability to shape the future.
Writer Samah Abu Bakr Ezzat said that reading represents the true passport for a child’s mind towards the future, affirming that the book remains the safest friend for building children’s conscience and protecting them from the distractions of the virtual world.