Frankfurt Book Fair day 2: How the UAE will become a global hub for publishing

A woman stands in front of shelves at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, on October 20, 2016. The world's largest book fair runs from October 19 to 23, 2016. AFP

The UAE took centre stage at the world’s largest book fair – before it even began. The emirates were one of just seven key nations represented at the Frankfurt Book Fair’s Global Publishing Summit – alongside countries including the United Kingdom, Spain and the Philippines which took place a day before the fair’s launch, on October 18.

Among the emirate’s high-profile representatives were Sheikha Bodour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, founder and honorary president of Emirates Publishers Association (EPA) and member of the International Publishers Association (IPA)’s Executive Committee.

She told delegates how the UAE grew from a “new concern” less than four decades ago to become one of the world’s fastest growing markets for books, growing 12 percent annually over the past decade.

“In the UAE we have witnessed incredible strides in publishing,” said Sheikha Bodour Al Qasimi, in a talk entitled A Vision for the Future of Publishing in the UAE.

“In the 1980s we introduced the country’s first press and publications law and held the inaugural Sharjah International Book Fair. These were the foundations for our modern publishing and literature industries and were key initiatives that underpinned the expansion of the sector.”

The UAE’s domestic publishing industry is now the 34th largest in the world, with exports worth more than $40 million per year, publishing close to 500 titles a year.

In 1970, the UAE published just six titles.

In a later talk, also on the Vision Lab stage, Jamal Bin Huwaireb, managing director of the Al Maktoum Foundation, looked both to the past and the future, in a talk entitled Dubai: A Centre for Knowledge.

He described how the UAE has been a historic centre for trade and the exchange of ideas, and told the international audience how the emirates will soon host the largest library in the Arab world – the forthcoming $250 million Mohammed bin Rashid Library in Al Jaddaf, which will overlook Dubai Creek.

Speaking earlier on the Analysis Stage, Walid Aradi, CEO of Tahseen Consulting, gave an insightful presentation, packed with thorough research and statistics, detailing the UAE’s ascent to become the largest market for books in the Arab world, with imports worth more than $125 million.

He, too, looked towards the future. Citing the emirates youthful and affluent population, Aradi shared predictions that the UAE book market will increase from $233 Million this year to $650 Million by 2030.

“The UAE is the story of a place with a fledgling industry three decades ago,” said Aradi, “but became a regional hub.

“Now, it has a vision to become a global hub.”