His Highness. Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, has ordered the allocation of Dhs10 million to the acquisition of the latest publications issued by the publishing houses participating in the Sharjah International Book Fair, SIBF.

SIBF 2020 is organised by Sharjah Book Authority, SBA, and themed “The World Reads from Sharjah”. Expo Centre Sharjah will showcase more than one million books by 1,024 publishers from 73 nations at the fair.

The continuation of his Highness support to the book publishing industries is to enrich the public and governmental libraries in Sharjah with the latest intellectual and scientific publications in Arabic and foreign languages.

The generous gesture of the Ruler of Sharjah comes this year as a much-needed contribution to sustain the book publishing industry as it was badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ahmed Bin Rakkad Al Amiri, Chairman of Sharjah Book Authority, SBA, appreciate this generous gesture and he said, “This Grant of the Ruler of Sharjah sends a message from the emirate of Sharjah to the book publishers, both regionally and globally, that they are not alone in these hard times and they have someone who supports them and believes in their message and service they provide to the present and future of humanity.”

“This annual support of his highness also cements the status of the emirate of Sharjah, under the visionary leadership of Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammed Al Qasimi, as a beacon of culture that embraces cultural initiatives regionally and internationally,” the SBA Chairman added.

WAM