Prime Minister and Minister of Interior H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani visiting the pavilions at the 31st Doha International Book Fair 2022, at Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC), yesterday. Photo by Salim Matramkot | The Peninsula
Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani inaugurated the 31st Doha International Book Fair 2022 yesterday at Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC) in the presence of ministers, ambassadors, and several dignitaries.
The book fair, organised under strict COVID-19 preventive measures, features 845 pavilions, 437 publishing houses, including 319 Arab and 45 foreign publishing houses, and 73 publishing houses for children’s books.
Several cultural activities and workshops are also lined-up for during the Fair, which will run until January 22. The Prime Minister visited pavilions of ministries, embassies, GCC Secretariat General, bookstalls, and booths offering cultural activities.
He also visited the Creative Children’s Garden, a platform to broadcast children's programmes and activities, enabling them to enjoy the book fair activities in their homes.
Speaking to media persons at the opening ceremony, Minister of Culture H E Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Hamad Al Thani said: “We succeeded in organising 31st Doha International Book Fair in an exceptional situation because of COVID-19.”
He added that this is the largest book fair ever held in Qatar and urged visitors to adhere strictly to COVID-19 preventive measures and ensure they pre-register before attending the fair.
Organised by the Qatar Cultural and Heritage Events Center at the Ministry of Culture under the theme’ Knowledge is Light’, the book fair opens from 9 am to 10 pm throughout the week and from 3 pm to 10 pm on Friday.
Nine embassies, including The US, Palestine, Russia, Italy, France, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Syria, and South Korea, are participating in this year’s event.
The GCC pavilion is show-casing publications, books, guidebooks, and laws issued by GCC the Secretariat. Speaking to The Peninsula, Director of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Department Human and Environment Affairs at GCC Secretariat General, Saad Mohammed Alzughaibi, said that the participation of GCC Secretariat aims at demonstrating the culture of GCC countries, showcasing publications and supporting the research scholars.
Alzughaibi praised the Minister of Culture H E Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Hamad Al Thani for organising this fair during this exceptional situation with adequate measures in place to curb the pandemic. He said that the GCC pavilion is receiving an overwhelming response from visitors
Ministry of Education and Higher Education is presenting educational archives demonstrating education development in Qatar.
Ali Safori, a representative from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, said that the pavilion is hosting a mini-museum and exhibition on the history of education in the country in the form of educational collections starting from the old days of curricula, books educational tools to the most advanced technologies today.
He said that old stationery and chairs used in the past are also being showcased at the pavilion.
The Ministry of Municipality and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change are participating under one pavilion.
Head of the Public Relation Section at the Ministry of Municipality, Aisha Al Madeed, said that the pavilion is represented by six key sectors of both ministries showcasing several valuable books on the environment, bio-diversity, animals living in this region, trees and plants in Qatar, old civilization, climate change, urban planning and many more.
She said that the visitors could take the books free of cost from the library of the Ministry. She disclosed that visitors would be introduced to the services of the six major sectors of both ministries.
Besides, bookstalls partici-pating in the fair offer various types of books in different languages, with many dedicated to children’s books.
Rashid Abu Rashid, an exhibitor of a stall dedicated to children, said: “We offer many storybooks in easy language which are very help full in encouraging children to read.”
He said that there are a lot of books on other topics related to children, such as educating them about the importance of maintaining hygiene, behavior, traditions, and culture.
The pavilion of Al Noor Center For The Blind showcases Braille books and learning tools equipped with the most advanced techniques for people with visual impairment.
Mohamad Hashem, an exhibitor at the pavilion, said: “We offer the latest Braille books and learning tools to enable people with visual impairment to obtain knowledge easily.”
According to the Ministry of Public Health, strict COVID-19 measures are in place to ensure the capacity of the book fair at all times for 2,000 visitors. Interested visitors must register before attending the event as the registration code sent to their emails is required for entry.
