The Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt has hosted the Arab Book Award symposium.
The Arab Book Award, one of the most important cultural awards in the Arab world, was established in 2023 under the patronage of His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.
Participating in the symposium were the award’s media adviser Prof Hanan al-Fayyad, media co-ordinator Dr Imtenan al-Samadi, and Dr Medhat Issa, the director of the Manuscript Centre and Museum at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
Bibliotheca Alexandrina director Prof Ahmed Zayed said that the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is keen to support the Arab cultural movement and promote intellectual and knowledge initiatives that contribute to raising cultural awareness and promoting serious scientific production.
Prof al-Fayyad spoke about the award’s objectives and categories, and called for the advancement of written Arabic content and encouraging writers and research institutions to continue contributing in light of current challenges.
She emphasised that the award seeks to encourage authentic intellectual production and support research projects that contribute to building knowledge, developing awareness, and fostering a scientific and intellectual renaissance.
It also encourages, she said, publishers and those involved in the book industry to promote and develop Arabic publishing, enabling it to compete globally.
Prof al-Fayyad said that the judging of works competing in the award is carried out by specialist committees according to precise, transparent, and objective criteria, including academic originality, research depth, quality of presentation, treatment, documentation, and other criteria.
Furthermore, participation must fall within one of the five fields of knowledge covered by the award: literary and linguistic studies, Sharia and Islamic studies, historical studies, social and philosophical studies, dictionaries and encyclopedias, and text editing.
Dr al-Samadi presented a paper on The Role of Awards in the Book Industry and Stimulating Quality Authorship (Intellectual, Cognitive, and Creativity), where she reviewed the history of writing.
At the conclusion of the symposium, Prof al-Fayyad presented honorary shields and certificates of appreciation to a number of institutions and writers.