Sharjah Book Fair’s Professional Programme attracts

The Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) has announced the completion of its preparations for the sixth edition of the Professional Programme, to be held as part of the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF). Taking place at the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 30 October to 1 November, this key event in the international publishing calendar has confirmed participation of more than 350 publishers and rights professionals from around the world.

The three-day training programmme, which aims to develop and polish the skills of Emirati and Arab publishers will feature important seminars, panel discussions and one-to-one matchmaking sessions based 
on the crucial themes of purchasing and selling translation rights in the international publishing market.

HE Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chairman of SBA, said, “Every year, the Professional Programme is one of the key highlights of SIBF, and we are eager to sign off on its preparations prior to the Fair. Our groundwork for the sixth edition is already complete, and has been built to focus on crucial topics facing the world of publishing today, with a special focus on translation rights. In line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, the event will promote dialogue among civilisations and enriching the publishing industry and ultimately culminate into the signing of several agreements between the programme’s participants.”

For his part, Salim Omar Salim, Director of Sales and Marketing at SBA, said: “We are pleased with SIBF Professional Programme’s excellent outcomes in its past five editions. The programme’s impact is reflected in the turnout of publishers and copyrights and translations experts, which has grown exponentially each year. This year, we are welcoming more than 350 international publishers who will inform and educate Arab and Emirati publishers about the recent trends and fast development that the publishing industry is witnessing globally.” 

On day 1, the programme will host a training course for 50 Arab publishers in collaboration with the Center for Publishing at New York University School for Professional Studies. 
On day 2, the programme will feature three sessions, the first of which titled ‘Google Playbook in the Middle East and North Africa’, will be led by Alexander Bergmann, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Google. 
The second session, ‘How to Evoke the Future? Towards Building a Market for e-books’, will feature Canadian start-up success, Michael Tamblyn, President & CEO Rakuten Kobo as a key speaker. This will be followed by a third session that will host Shadi Al Hasan, Founder & CEO of Flagship Projects for Communication Strategies with a 20+ years of high-level industry experience in the Middle East brand positioning market. 

The second day of the programme will witness a panel discussion titled ‘Outlook on the Reality of Arab Publishing’, with the participation of Marcia Lynx Qualey, translator and blogger of Arabic literature; and Tamer Said, General Manager of Kalimat Group. The programme will also witness business meetings, periphery sessions dedicated to buying rights, and an orientation session on how to facilitate access to Arabic publishing and translation.

The third and final day of the Professional Programme will host a panel discussion on ‘Arab Market Perspectives’, with the participation of Matthew Drury, Sales Manager, Middle East and Africa at Hachette Book Group; Kempton Mooney, Senior Director, Research and Analytics at Nielsen Book Centre; Nermin Mollaoğlu, Literary Agent at Kalem Agency; and Ahmed Rashad, Executive Director of the Egyptian Lebanese Publishing House. 

The Professional Programme is one the key highlights of SIBF that attracts top publishing rights professionals from over 50 countries. It aims build a bridge between the fair’s participants and publishing professionals in the world, particularly Arab countries. Attendees will be presented an opportunity to benefit from the SIBF Translation Grant – a $300,000 fund for rights agreements, which will be concluded during the Professional Programme.