Sharjah International Book Fair organizers say the 43rd edition of the show drew some 1.8 million attendees, including 135,000 school students. Image: Sharjah Book Authority
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
See also:
A First Cohort of 20 Aspiring Publishers: The Onshur Incubator
Sharjah’s 2024 Turjuman Translation Honor and Other Awards
Sharjah International Book Fair Opens Its 43rd Edition
Bodour Al Qasimi Opens the 2024 Sharjah Publishers Conference
Remembering Bassam Chebaro’s Proud Role in Arab Publishing
Sharjah Publishers Conference: 30 Round-Table Programs
UAE: Sharjah Publishers Conference Outlines Its 2024 Program
UAE: Sharjah Book Authority Approves 303 Translation Grants
Emirati Women’s Day: PublisHer and Visa Present ‘She’s Next’
UAE: Sharjah International Book Fair Opens Its Awards
UAE: Sharjah Signs Morocco as Its International Book Fair Guest of Honor
More Than 200 Nations Represented in the Fair’s Turnout
Organizers behind what has become the Arab world’s largest book fair report today that Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) from Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) closed on Sunday (November 17) with a total 1.82 million visitors counted, representing more than 200 countries.
This dovetails with today’s news (November 18) that Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi has designated a site on Emirates Road, opposite the Sharjah Mosque, as a new venue for the book fair, which for years has been seen at the Expo Sharjah complex.
While many in the world publishing industry now readily think of the Sharjah Publishers Conference as a go-to gathering that immediately precedes the public-facing fair each year, the fair itself now is displaying some of its singular value by pointing out, for example, that that crowd of nearly 2 million visitors were mainly in the age demographics of 25 to 44. Fully 63 percent were in this highly valued range of adulthood ages, demonstrating that schoolchildren were not the overwhelming subset of visitors.
Within that 25-to-44-year group, the biggest component was aged between 35 and 44, becoming the largest age-demographic at the show, at 32.18 percent. The 25-to-34-year factor, then came in at 13.7 percent.
Sharjah International Book Fair is ‘now a fully-fledged cultural ecosystem, bringing together creators, readers, and all key stakeholders in the literary and publishing sectors.”Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri
One of the most interesting figures we’re being given today is in the gender of attendees, with 53.66 percent of the Sharjah International Book Fair’s attendees being male, and 46.36 percent being female.
In many parts of the world, women lead in book-buying and reading, while this fair-going statistic shows a small lead among men over women at Sharjah, an encouraging if anecdotal statistic at time when the importance of men reading has become more evident and many markets’ book-publishing national industries showing a lag in male book-business employees.
There were 135,000 students at the show during its 12-day run, from schools in many parts of the United Arab Emirates, which of course is great. But those active-age adults in their key years of earning power and market driving potential form a promising factor, themselves, in this year’s turnout at the fair.
Several key numbers are also important here: There were as many as 3,000 meetings focused on publishing rights this year, the Book Authority reports, and those were part of the 14th edition of the Publishers Conference, which again this year held an intensive offering of one-on-one rights meetings over 48 hours.
And with that as part of the professional program, the consumer-facing elements of the fair t followed included at least 1,000 book signings.
And among the most magnanimous of fair-time gestures from Sharjah’s Sheikh Sultan was an allocation of 4.5 million UAE dirhams (US$1.3 million) to public and government libraries, to support the acquisition of both Arabic and international titles.
Bodour Al Qasimi
Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, CEO of the Book Authority, refers to this in saying, “The exceptional milestones achieved during SIBF 2024 mark a significant addition to Sharjah’s cultural journey.”
The attendance figures and as many as 2,500 publishers and exhibitors being engaged, Al Ameri says, “has elevated the event from a book fair to a dynamic and thriving book community. It’s now a fully-fledged cultural ecosystem, bringing together creators, readers, and all key stakeholders in the literary and publishing sectors.
“This remarkable accomplishment,” he says, “underscores the global significance of the cultural vision founded by His Highness and pursued by SBA under the leadership and guidance of Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, the authority’s chairperson.
Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri
“Under his leadership, the fair has evolved into an inspiring model of a community dedicated to the book and all facets of its creation. It’s a driving force in fostering a culture of reading and fortifying the publishing industry on both local and international fronts.”
As Publishing Perspectives readers know, Algerian author Ahlam Mosteghanemi was named SIBF’s Cultural Personality of the Year for her “extraordinary contributions to Arabic literature.”
This year’s program also celebrated the completion of the Historical Corpus of the Arabic Language, a monumental 127-volume achievement that preserves centuries of linguistic heritage, produced through collaboration with Arabic language academies and a specific focus of Sheikh Sultan’s attention for years.
Morocco was SIBF’s guest of honor market this year, as our readers know, and its pavilion reportedly featured the work of 22 publishers, some 4,000 books, artifacts, and sessions about the market’s cultural life for fair attendees.
In workshops, seminars, and panel discussions, fairgoing attendees saw at least 85 Arab and Emirati writers, and 49 international literary personalities.
More from Publishing Perspectives on international book fairs and trade shows is here, more on Sharjah Book Authority and its programs is here, and more on the Sharjah International Book Fair is here.
About the Author
