The Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature, organised by the UAE Board on Books for Young People (UAEBBY) and sponsored by Emirates Telecommunication Company (Etisalat), has announced that publishers of Arabic children and young people’s literature worldwide can submit their entry applications online through the award’s official website: www.etisalataward.ae, before the end of August 2016.

Designed to simplify the submissions procedure, the Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature’s website includes the entry formand eligibility criteria, which stipulate that the entry should be a book targeting children and young adults aged 0-18 and that its content should have a high degree of artistic merit, it should be original and written in Arabic, translated entries are not eligible. Thoseparticipating in the Young Adult Category (Ages 13-18) should join a soft copy (PDF file) of their entries,keeping in mind that the deadline to receive the electronic version of entries is the 31st of July.

In addition to submission instructions, the website provides information about the value of the award, which is worth AED one million distributed overthe five categories as follows: ‘Children’s Book of the Year,’ valued at AED 300,000 to be distributed equally between the publisher, author and illustrators; ‘Young Adult Book of the Year’ worth AED 200,000 to be distributed equally between the author and publisher and ‘Best Text,’ ‘Best Illustration’ and ‘Best Production’ categories worth AED 100,000 each. AED 200,000 from the award is dedicated to organising workshops to build Arab youth capacities in writing and illustration.

“We opened online Registration to those wishing to participate at the 8th Edition of Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature because we are always keen to facilitate the submission process for all publishing houses and publishers, encouraging them to increase the number of local, regional and international entries. This step falls under our strategy to publish and distribute Arabic children’s books, which plays a key role in inspiring younger generations with constructive bright ideas that contribute to building their personalities and capabilities,” said Marwa Al Aqroubi, President of the UAEBBY Executive Board.

Al Aqroubi pointed out that the award entry form containsa number of straightforward questions for submitters which require information about the publishing house, a brief profile or biography of the author and illustrator. She stressed that each publishing house has the right to submit a maximum of three entries in the Children’s Category and an unlimited number of entries in the Young Adult Category.The submitted entry or entries should not have been published more than three years previously for the Children’s Category and not more than five years previously for the Young Adult Category. The submitted titles should also not have previously received any local, Arab or international award and a separate complete form is required for each entry and candidate. 

The Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature was launched in 2009 by Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Founder and Patron of UAEBBY with the aim of promoting a culture of reading and instilling a love of Arabic books within children. It works to honour the creative productions of the best authors, illustrators and publishers in children’s literature and motivates them to produce innovative texts, productions and designs that will result in a greater number of unique and high-quality Arabic children's books.