MUSCAT: The 27th edition of Muscat International Book Fair will kick off on February 22 under the auspices of Sayyid Hamoud bin Faisal al Busaidy, Minister of Interior. The 11-day literary extravaganza will be held at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Giving the details of the book fair at a press conference held by the Ministry of Information on Monday under the
auspices of Sayyid Said bin Sultan al Busaidy, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth for Culture, Deputy Chairman of the organising committee of Muscat International Book Fair, said: “The Governorate of South Al Batinah will be honorary guest of the 27th version of the book fair, which includes a number of cultural, technical and artistic activities."
The book fair will provide a number of cultural halls, like Ahmed Bin Majid Gallery, Al Farahidi Gallery, Ibn Dureid Gallery and Al Awtabi Gallery.
Mohammed bin Said al Balushi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Information for Radio and Television, Chairman of the Book Fair’s Media Committee, and Ahmed bin Saud al Rawahi, Director of Muscat International Book Fair, were also present on the occasion.
Mohammed al Balushi said: “Various media programmes will be conducted during the book fair, which will also host media professionals and scholars who influenced Arab literary life.”
He said that, though freedom of expression is guaranteed by law, but publications which compromise national or religious values are not welcomed in the book fair.
The book fair will continue till March 4.
Speaking on the occasion, Al Rawahi said the book fair returns are not limited to proceeds from books, but revenues are generated via airlines, restaurants, hotels, transportation, and other shopping activities. "All of this contributes to domestic commercial interactions."
The exhibition will feature 47 globally renowned intellectuals, media, GCC and Arab exhibition managers, and the President of the Arab Publishers Union.
Ignatius von Weitenauer, Ibrahim al Koni, Sinan Anton, Saa' don al Jabir, and Haggi Jabbir are notable intellectuals participating in the book fair.
Around 32 countries are participating in the exhibition, including 826 publishing houses and 533,063 titles. Among them are 260,614 in Arabic, 204,411 foreign books and 22,950 Omani books, with 5,900 fresh issues for 2023.
There is a designated area for children and families, as well as a theatre for events, scientific and cultural activities, a reading corner, and workshops. In comparison to the last edition of the book fair, which contained approximately 129 child activities, the current edition includes a total of 166 activities.
A special corner will be dedicated to Omani authors and publications, including those written in Zanzibar, Arab countries or European countries.
The Muscat International Book Fair has a 3D feature, many cafés to provide a fun time to families and friends in their search journey for their favourite books and authors.
For the first time, artificial intelligence will be used to register the number of visitors, their gender, and age and to facilitate payment by using electronic payment in collaboration with Bank Dhofar.
"We exert all feasible means to come up with a successful cultural interface for this country since the book fair isn't simply a platform for selling and buying books but also a cultural phenomenon gathering all intellectual and families under one roof," said Al Rawahi.
Sayyid Said al Busaidy expects that the Bahraini Cultural Week will positively impact visitors and help introduce Bahraini culture as the case is for future editions for other nations.
Authorities having expertise in the book industry will participate in the book fair, while authors will sign their respective publications.
The book fair will provide an electronic application and a mobile catalogue. It will also promote volunteering activities to offer an opportunity to hone the skills of interested segments.
A corner will be allocated to signing cultural and literary publications. The management of the book fair provided electronic payment solutions at all its participants' platforms in coordination with a local bank.
Thursday (February 23), Monday and Wednesday are designated for male school students, while Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday are for female students.
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