Sharjah guest of honour at Moscow book fair
sharjah — Sharjah will be the ‘special guest of honour’ at the 2019 edition of Moscow International Book Fair (MIBF), set to take place from September 4 to 8.
The announcement came during a meeting between Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, chairman of the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), and Vladimir V Grigoriev, deputy head of the Federal Agency for Press and Mass Communication, the organisers of MIBF.
Also present at this meeting were Andrey Gelmiza, general director of MIBF; Naima Al Musharrkh, second secretary of the UAE Embassy in Russia; SBA officials; and representatives of the Russian Federal Agency for Press and Mass Communications.
As the special guest of honour, Sharjah will serve as the cultural ambassador of the UAE and the Arab world, introducing the country and the region’s culture, arts, heritage and knowledge-based traditions, as well as recent accomplishments, through a series of seminars, events and workshops at the ‘Sharjah Pavilion’, to be hosted by the SBA.
Marked by its linguistic achievements, creative products and fastgrowing publishing industry, the emirate’s cultural journey — led by the vision and the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah — will be showcased at the Sharjah Pavilion at MIBF 2019.
“This is a great honour and valuable addition to the recent cultural achievements attained by Sharjah. Celebrating Sharjah on the MIBF platform reflects the long-term vision of both the UAE and Russia to establish bridges of communication with other world cultures. We believe culture binds nations and people together and promotes tolerance and understanding,” said Al Ameri.
Grigoriev said: “We are proud to host Sharjah, as a special guest of honour at MIBF this year, which is the same year that the world is celebrating the emirate as the Unesco World Book Capital. Sharjah will be our window, not only to Emirati, but the Arab culture. The book fair will be a great platform for promoting the cultural exchange and cooperation between our two countries.”