Sharjah International Book Fair declared largest book fair in the world for second year in a row

The 41st edition will be held from November 2 to 13 under the slogan ‘Spread the Word’, and will bring together 2,213 publishers from 95 countries

Afkar Ali Ahmed

Published: Wed 2 Nov 2022, 10:59 AM

Last updated: Wed 2 Nov 2022, 4:28 PM

The Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) has been declared the “world's largest book fair” in terms of buying and selling of copyrights for the second year in a row.

His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, witnessed the historic announcement during the opening ceremony of the 41st edition of the annual book fair on Tuesday at Expo Centre Sharjah.

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The milestone was announced by Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chairman of the Sharjah Book Authority, who asserted that the crowning achievement relays to the world the emirate’s message of fostering cultural communication and dialogue amongst nations through the written word.

This comes as the three-day SIBF Publishers Conference that hosted 1,041 publishers and literary agents concluded with 958 tables set for the matchmaking meetings.

The 2022 edition of SIBF will be held from November 2 - 13 at Expo Centre Sharjah under the slogan ‘Spread the Word’, and will bring together 2,213 publishers from 95 countries and display more than 1.5 million books. More than 100 writers and intellectuals from 57 countries will lead vibrant and diverse activities at the 12-day cultural extravaganza.

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Commenting on the achievement, Al Ameri said: “Today, we celebrate a new cultural achievement bearing the imprint of the emirate of Sharjah and its cultural project, which was launched under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, who firmly believes that building strong societies and civilisations can only be achieved through knowledge and books.”

The SBA Chairman added: "This achievement is a source of pride and honour for Sharjah, the UAE and the Arab world, because it confirms the emirate's role in advancing the book industry, and presents an honourable image of the authentic Arab culture that has contributed to the advancement of Eastern and Western civilisations around the world."