Bensaid highlights business opportunities for Moroccan publishers in Sharjah (UAE)
Morocco's stand at the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) was busier than usual on Sunday. Authorities, media and visitors filled the space where this country shows its great artistic and cultural heritage.
Morocco's rich heritage
Surrounded by the colourful Moroccan handicrafts projected on two large columns and the video exhibition of the beautiful cities of Morocco, the Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication, Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid, observed in detail every corner of the stand, this open window showing the rich heritage of his country, its history, its manuscripts, including those of the geographers Ibn Battura and Al-Idrisi, historical maps, a replica of the world's first skull, books on the traditions of its regions...
The minister, who was accompanied by the director general of the Sharjah Book Authority, Ahmed bin Rakkad al-Ameri, the Moroccan director of Books, Libraries and Archives, Latifa Moftaqir, and the Moroccan ambassador to the UAE, Ahmed Tazi, among other personalities, took advantage of his stay to walk around the fair and visit the 25 Moroccan publishers participating in this edition with a total of 4,000 signatures.
Economic and business opportunity
Bensaid was very friendly and greeted the different publishers, with whom he exchanged some impressions and took an interest in the course of the fair. In statements to the press, he stressed the importance of this cultural event for Moroccan publishers, as they can establish publishing relations not only with other Arab countries, but also with foreign countries, so that Moroccan authors can be published and Moroccan works can be promoted. The minister recalled that the SIBF ‘is one of the largest publishing markets in the world’, hence, he stressed, ‘the economic and business opportunity’ that it represents for Moroccan booksellers.
Cultural collaboration
The minister also referred to his country's excellent relations with the Arab Emirates, and specifically with Sharjah, and announced that cultural collaboration will be intensified with new projects and initiatives that will favour cooperation and the exchange of experiences, especially with regard to books. The aim, he said, is to ‘broaden the prospects for joint action between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United Arab Emirates’.
The minister, to questions from the press, spoke of the honour for Morocco to be the guest of honour at the 49th edition of the SIBF at a time, he stressed, when Moroccan-Emirati relations ‘are experiencing a qualitative leap’, which places the cultural sphere on the same level as the political and economic relations ‘that unite the two brotherly countries’. According to Bensaid, these excellent relations are due to the leadership of the leaders of both countries: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan and His Majesty Mohammed VI.
He also did not spare words of praise for Sharjah for the organisation of this international event and for the effort it is making in the field of culture, being a reference, he said, not only in the United Arab Emirates but also in the world.
Tour of the SIBF
During his tour of the fair, the minister showed great interest in the stand of the antiquarian INLIBRIS, an Austrian company founded in 1883, which displays a kind of small museum where you can see a number of rare books and ancient manuscripts.
He also went to the area dedicated to prominent international chefs. Waiting for him there was the Moroccan chef Kimo, who is currently cooking live some of Morocco's typical dishes such as Kebad. Kimo showed him his recipe book and even gave him a taste of some of his dishes.
After visiting the various pavilions, the minister took advantage of his stay to meet with the director general of the Book Authority to discuss new joint actions, mainly in the field of cultural and creative industries.
The Sharjah International Book Fair hosts more than 2,500 publishers from 108 countries, around 400 authors and 1,400 cultural, literary and educational activities that will take place until 17 November.
