Thursday, 18 April 2013

ABU DHABI INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIR PREPARES TO WELCOME OVER 200,000 GUESTS



  • Over 1,000 exhibitors from 50 countries will participate in this year’s fair
  • Exhibitor numbers are up  by 13%

Abu Dhabi, 17 April, 2013: The 23rd Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (ADIBF) today unveiled new cultural, professional, and young readers’ programmes.
The programmes are expected to boost attendance at the fair, which runs at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from April 24-29, with organisers Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) pointing to a 15% increase in exhibition space for this year’s edition and a 13% uplift in exhibitor numbers.
“The Abu Dhabi International Book Fair is recognised as the region’s most professional book fair and one of the world’s fastest-growing publishing events,” said His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director Generalm TCA Abu Dhabi. “We have enhanced the fair’s cultural and professional programmes to include new panel discussions and to highlight different cultural elements this year, such as musical ensembles from GCC countries. This will all further enrich the experience of the tens of thousands expected to visit the event.”

The annual fair, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, provides literary and publishing trendsetters and market leaders a platform to promote the greatest in book titles, e-bookcontent, and digital apps as well as cultural excellence.

Mr. Jumaa Abdulla Al Qubaisi, ADIBF Director says the fair will be:“bigger, more comprehensive, and more engaging than ever.
We are extremely encouraged by the fair’s annual growth and the strengthening of its reputation as a regional and international cultural centre for Arabic cultural life, literature, and publishing.

“Today the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair attracts publishers and internationally renowned authors from around the world to an event that is a highly effective catalyst for Arabic-language publishing, the promotion of reading among the young, and the nurturing of new writing talent.”

The fair’s comprehensive agenda of panel discussions, presentations, talks, and networking opportunities is even more cutting-edge this year. Visitors will enjoy an exciting and very culturally diverse line-up of over 30 sessions that bring together over 50 professional speakers, market leaders, and trendsetters to share opinions and ideas on contemporary publishing issues.

Mr. Mohamed Abdulla Al Shehhi, Director of Publishing, TCA Abu Dhabi, added:  “We are looking forward to welcoming hundreds of exhibitors from over 50 countries who will showcase over 500,000 titles which represent a mix of cultural, intellectual, and business books in over 30 languages demonstrating the remarkable richness and diversity of the fair’s content.”

The fair will again have a strong focus on young readers. “This reflects our belief that education is a fundamental element of the fair and our commitment to nurturing reading habits among the young,” explained Al Qubaisi. . To ensure that the maximum number of children could attend the fair, the dates for this year’s edition were moved to avoid any clashes with school exams.  

Young book lovers will enjoy readings, book signings, and workshops with writers and storytellers from around the world, as well as presentations by artists exhibiting in the Illustrator’s Corner. The Creativity Corner workshops will include talks on recycling and protecting the environment, animated films, traffic awareness, and more.
The ADIBF has also recognised the growing importance of digital publishing and has doubled the size of its eZone for 2013, enabling a much stronger focus on the growing phenomenon of ebooks and digital publishing that are becoming increasingly popular among the region’s tech-savvy youth.

The ADIBF is the Middle East’s only book fair to offer a platform for IT- and technology-driven companies and service providers to interact and do business with publishers. This year, once again, the eZone and Service Providers Area will feature seminars on cutting-edge issues at the crossroads of publishing and technology and will host companies from the US, Germany, Spain, Greece, the UAE, Jordan, and India.

The Illustrator’s Corner will continue to be one of the fair’s most popular and dynamic venues this year. The hub for visual content, the Illustrator’s Corner is a dedicated meeting-point for illustrators, graphic and comic strip designers, typographers, calligraphers, and agencies to come together to share and launch their work. This year the Illustrator’s Corner has a truly international flavour, hosting guests from Spain, Switzerland, the UAE, Syria, and Malaysia.

ADIBF will open daily from 9am to 10pm, except for Friday, when it will open from 4pm to 10pm. Entrance is free.
To find out more about the ADIBF, log on to www.adbookfair.com.

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