Sharjah — His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, and Her Highness Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), toured the participating pavilions at the 45th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) on Wednesday morning.
The fair, running from 4 to 15 November at Expo Centre Sharjah, brings together 3,212 publishers and exhibitors from 126 countries for its 12-day edition. Their Highnesses toured the halls and met with representatives of institutions, government bodies and publishing houses taking part in the event.
The tour began at the pavilion of the Sultanate of Oman, this year’s Guest of Honour. The Omani delegation provided a detailed briefing on the country’s participation and showcased key cultural and heritage publications reflecting Omani traditions and customs. Their Highnesses were also briefed on Oman’s guest of honour programme for SIBF 2026.
At the Sharjah Police pavilion, a presentation was made of “Writer of the Future,” an initiative that discovers and nurtures literary talent among young people through a training programme focused on producing meaningful stories and developing creative writing and storytelling skills. The initiative, which also seeks to raise awareness and instil positive values among younger generations, has resulted in the publication of three winning stories.
Their Highnesses were also introduced to the “Smart Adaptive Learning” platform at the Sharjah Police pavilion, which uses artificial intelligence technologies to enhance the educational process. The platform provides lessons, exercises and assessments tailored to students’ needs by analysing their performance, identifying proficiency levels and recognising strengths.
The tour included visits to several cultural institutions, participating organisations and publishing houses, including the pavilions of the Ministry of Culture, the National Media Authority, the Sharjah Identity platform, Sharjah Broadcasting Authority, the Emirates Publishers Association and House of Wisdom.
Their Highnesses also visited the Hamdan Bin Mohammed Heritage Center, the Emirates Reprographic Rights Management Association, American University of Sharjah, University of Sharjah, the Emirates Writers Union, Sharjah Institute for Heritage, the Kingdom of Bahrain pavilion, the State of Kuwait pavilion, Al Qasimi Publications and the UAE Board on Books for Young People.
The tour also included a visit to the Judicial Council pavilion, which features several recent publications by the Sharjah Judicial Sciences Institute, among them a Braille edition of the Personal Status Law designed for visually impaired law students. The pavilion also showcases initiatives and recent publications from the Judicial Department and the Public Prosecution, alongside knowledge-focused initiatives including the “Athar” initiative.
This year’s book fair offers more than 1.7 million titles in many languages, spanning literature, thought, science and children’s books. Arab and international publishers are sharing the halls with government institutions and departments presenting their latest publications and cultural initiatives.
