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Sharjah / Emirates Business
His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, directed the allocation of AED2.5mn worth of books to enrich Sharjah’s public, school and university libraries. The initiative, which will significantly expand the number of titles available to the public, comes in line with 2016 being declared as the UAE’s ‘Year of Reading.’
The books will be purchased from publishers participating in the eighth edition of the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF 2016), which is currently underway at Expo Centre Sharjah. In addition to broadening access to sources of knowledge and culture for the emirate’s citizens and residents, the move will support publishers and the regional book industry as a whole.
SCRF 2016, which is running over 11 days until April 30, is being held with the participation of 130 publishing houses from 15 countries. The UAE tops the list of countries taking part with 55 publishing houses, followed by Lebanon with 25 and Egypt with 20. Canada, China, India and the United Kingdom are among the many other countries having a significant presence at this year’s festival, which is exhibiting books in Arabic, English, French, Indian and Urdu, among other languages.