Over 500 publishing houses taking part in Riyadh book fair

The Riyadh International Book Fair has opened in the Saudi capital, with some 500 publishing houses from around the world taking part in one of the largest cultural events in the Kingdom.
The 10-day fair is being held under the theme, "The Book is the Future of Transformation", and is offering over 60,000 titles from a variety of genres, says a Press release issued by the CIC, a Saudi government agency.
Dr Awwad Alawwad, Saudi Minister of Culture and Information, said in a speech on the opening day on Wednesday this year's theme "stresses that the exhibition keeps pace with the Kingdom's Vision 2030". "This year, we have more than 500 publishers and 80 events, 15 of which are devoted to reading activities and art," the minister added.
The fair, organised by the Ministry of Culture and Information, will welcome visitors until March 24.
This year's Guest of Honour is the United Arab Emirates, which is represented by more than 20 publishing houses. Each year a country is nominated as the guest of honour and is allocated a special pavilion for it to display its culture and literature.
"Choosing the UAE reflects the strong relations between the two countries, in addition to the UAE's cultural and civilizational heritage, which is a model of civilizational coexistence among countries," Dr Alawwad said.
Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, UAE Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, who headed a high-ranking delegation, said in her speech, "This kind gesture adds a new line in the history of the mutual, extended cohesion and interdependence between Saudi Arabia and the UAE. It embodies the historical relations that link the two brotherly peoples based on mutual understanding, cultural and historical heritage, values, customs and common social traditions."
Choosing UAE as a guest of honour "is a tribute to the UAE for its leading role in various fields of thought and culture; it is also an opportunity to showcase and share our literature, history and publications. I hope that this exhibition will be a new incentive to strengthen the relations between the countries participating in the exhibition," she said.

• Saudi Arabia

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