Sharjah (UAE) – The Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) will soon collaborate with African publishers to bring one of the world’s largest book fairs into sub-Saharan Africa.
Chairman of the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), His Excellency Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, said, though he cannot reveal in detail the timeline of these plans, the SBA has been supporting the exposure of African literature even during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The SBA is a governmental entity operating in several sectors, under the literary umbrella; including publishing, printing, book translation, book festivals, and children’s literature.
Al Ameri said that last year, the SBA organised the first international booksellers’ conference in the world post-Covid-19 in which 55 countries were represented, including Kenya, Tanzania, and Nigeria.
“We have been doing some work in Africa. Our big value work was in Tanzania and in Kenya. We are going to do something in Uganda, and we are planning to do something in South Africa,” Al Ameri said, adding, “We are looking to Nigeria”.
Al Ameri said the issue with Africa was that it varied on customs, taxes and VAT, money exchange, and money transfers.
“All these issues we have to sort them out to do our events there,” said Al Ameri.
“But it’s not only that. We continue doing programmes to support authors. We even supported the publishers’ conference last year in Africa.
“So we are not stopping, we are continuing to support our African publishing industry.”
Al Ameri was speaking Wednesday night on the sidelines of the ongoing 41st Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“We are looking forward to growing stronger because a stronger Africa is good for the Middle East and the world,” he said.
“We are talking about 2.4 billion people who live in Africa. We are looking forward to meeting this market. We will try to bring them books at an affordable price.”
In his keynote address at the opening of the SIBF last week, Al Ameri announced that the SIBF had emerged as the largest book fair in the world for the second year in a row in terms of buying and selling copyrights in 2022.
The distinguished honour 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 Sharjah International Book Fair has a history that spans over 40 years and has cemented the foundation of the emirate’s future for a century ahead,” said Al Ameri.
“This feat is founded in the wise vision, unwavering support, and relentless efforts of Your Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, you have our sincere gratitude.”
