Sharjah Children's Reading Festival 2016 to Shine with 1,500 Events and 130 Publishers from 15 Countries

Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) has announced that the Sharjah Children's Reading Festival (SCRF) will host more than 1,500 events and see the participation of 130 publishers from 15 countries during its eighth edition, which will take place from April 20-30, 2016 at Expo Centre Sharjah.

Themed 'Shine Out,' SCRF 2016 is being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and his wife, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs.

Details of SCRF 2016 were revealed yesterday (Wednesday) during a press conference held at the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the presence of Ahmed Bin Rakkad Al Ameri, SBA Chairman; Mohamed Al Amimi, Vice-President, Business Engagement & Customer Support at Etisalat; Shehab Al Hammadi, Director of the Support Service Sector at Sharjah Media Corporation; Hind Abdulla Lenaid, Manager of Fairs and Festivals at Sharjah Book Authority, and Salim Omar Salim, Director of Marketing and Sales at SBA, in addition to a number of local and Arab media representatives. 

During his speech at the press conference, HE Ahmed Al Ameri said, "The Sharjah Children's Reading Festival, held under the generous patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah and with the directives and support of his wife, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, together with the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), contributes to emphasising Sharjah's leading cultural and intellectual position and the building of human intellectual capacity.” 

"I do not think that there is anyone here who is unaware of SIBF’s stature on both the local and international levels. Its globally acclaimed reputation did not come out of the blue, but is a result of the immense efforts, follow-up and guidance of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah over the past 34 years, each year of which he has given his special attention to human culture and knowledge. His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan Al Qasimi has always been driven to create generations that have a passion for learning, science and knowledge, as he understands that this is the only way for nations to prosper and continue to make progress,” he added.

“Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi instructed us to hold an event similar to SIBF but be exclusively dedicated to children, adolescents and the family. This directive was in line with Her Highness’ belief that reading must be nurtured with love and fun in children from an early age in order to empower them with intellect and knowledge,” Al Ameri continued.

Al Ameri noted that he had heard journalists referring to SIBF as ‘the big exhibition’ and speaking about SCRF as ‘the little one.’

"I would like to say that SCRF is big, in terms of its message, its goals and its far-sighted vision for the betterment of our children and our country. It is big because it establishes the sustainability and quality of SIBF, which grows year-on-year. It has achieved this with the support of inspiring Emirati minds who were children and adolescents and who are now present among us today to pave the way for more achievements and successes to be talked about on the global stage," SBA Chairman emphasised.

Speaking about the SCRF 2016 events, Al Ameri said: "The 8th edition of SCRF will take place from April 20-30 at Sharjah Expo Centre under the theme ‘Shine Out,’ with the participation of 130 publishing houses from 15 countries. The UAE tops the list of countries taking part with its 55 publishing houses, followed by Lebanon with 25 and Egypt with 20 publishers, with Canada, China, India and the United Kingdom among the many other countries having a presence. This year's edition will see the line-up of 1,518 events during its 11 days."

Al Ameri thanked all sponsors and supporters of the Sharjah Children's Reading Festival, notably Etisalat, Sharjah Media Corporation, Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry represented by Expo Centre, and Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq).

Extending special thanks to the media, Al Ameri said, "The messages from the local media that have clearly manifested their impressive interest in covering last year's edition and its associated events reflect their great awareness of SCRF's role in nurturing our children's minds and the development of Emirati generations. It also reveals their understanding of their role and responsibility as media professionals towards our society.”

Hind Abdullah Lenaid, said; "This year we have sought to focus on associating culture and reading with pleasure and entertainment in line with SBA's strategy to develop the Sharjah Children's Reading Festival, emphasising expanding children's intellect and nurturing their minds with knowledge. We worked relentlessly for six months to develop a range of events that attract children and the whole family. We have recently finished all preparations for the 11-day festival, which will feature 1, 518 events."

She added, “This year’s agenda span four main areas; the Children’s Programme with 1,245 events, the Cultural Programme with 74 activities, the Culinary Programme with 61 activities and the workshops with 27 activities. There are 45 events as part of the space exhibition and 35 activities as part of the fifth edition of the Sharjah Exhibition for Children's Book Illustrations."

She continued by saying; "The true word is like a lamp whose light will spread to illuminate the world. From Sharjah, the Capital of Culture, we will see the fifth edition of the Sharjah Exhibition for Children's Book Illustrations, which will showcase 1,083 illustrations by professional illustrators from 56 countries."

Mohamed Al Amimi, Vice-President, Business Engagement & Customer Support at Etisalat, said: “We are delighted on this occasion to express our sincere appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, for His Highness’ continuous support for what is an extremely important literary event."

"Today, we are few weeks away from launching the 8th edition of the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival, and we are proud to continue Etisalat’s sponsorship for this event, which seeks to preserve the Arabic language by bringing children and books together and instilling a love of reading in children and young adults.” Al Amimi added.

Shehab Al Hammadi, Director of the Support Service Sector at Sharjah Media Corporation, said, "We meet today to celebrate the book and what it represents. We are delighted to be part of this great event, instilling a love of reading in children who are the future generations and enlightening them with knowledge."

Al Hammadi added that Sharjah Media Corporation will participate in sponsoring the festival through the presence of a fully-equipped studio which will broadcast the events activities through its channels, which include Sharjah TV. Thanking the organisers of the festival he also said that that Sharjah Media Corporation would be supporting the festival by all means, such as through its social media networks.

Celebrities, authors and artists

During the press conference, a short video was shown, revealing the names of children's book authors participating in SCRF 2016 and its associated events. The 2016 edition will see the participation of an elite group of children’s book writers and educational experts, including famous Egyptian actress and TV presenter Najwa Ibrahim, Mohammed Yassin, Bahraini actor of Emirati origin, who is best known for his role ‘Baba Yassin’ and renowned Kuwaiti artist Huda Hussein, who is well known for her works targeting children. Also taking part in the festival is Saudi Arabian actor and playwright Ibrahim Hamed Al Harthi, a member of the theatre workshop in Al Taif.

Other prominent guests at SCRF will include renowned Moroccan author Al Arabi Ben Jeloun, Chairman of the Judging Panel of International Timitar Festival in Agadir since 1995; Qatari academic Dr. Rabeea Bin Sabah Al-Kawari, a renowned media professor at Qatar University; Jordanian writer Sana Al Hattab; Iraqi writer and illustrator Ali Al Mendalawi and Syrian writer Nabila Ahmed Ali, among others.

US novelist Tom McNeill, US author Laura McNeil, Children's Book Illustrator Michael Rex, British author Miriam Moss, writer John Walter, Australian author Christie Bern, Pakistani Cartoonist Nigar Nazar, and author Russell Molina from the Philippines will also be making an appearance during SCRF 2016. 

The Cultural Programme will have several intellectual seminars and educational lectures presented by a selection of the most prominent Arab and international writers and thinkers. The programme will also feature story readings, panel, discussions and workshops on children’s literature, theatre and cinema.

Little Innovator Café  

The Little Innovator Café for genius children will host inventors and children with special abilities and talents from the UAE, as well as a group of gifted children from Arab and foreign countries. The Little Innovator Café aims to highlight the most prominent innovations from children, with the list of Little Innovators including Yara Al Sheikh, Abdullah Ali Al Ahbabi, Tiara, Taneshek Abraham and others.

Beyond Planet Earth

The Festival will feature for the first time the exhibition ‘Beyond Planet Earth,’ a spectacular new activity that will take visitors on a journey to explore the boundaries of the future and highlight the possibilities of space flight. The exhibition will feature a collection of interactive mini-presentations offering glimpses of what might happen in the future over the next 50 and 100 years. 

The Interactive exhibition comprises the ‘Solar System Theatre,’ the ‘Returning to the Moon Corner,’ ‘Exploring Asteroids’, and ‘Voyaging to Mars.’ The exhibition has been designed to explore our solar system and beyond.

Cultural entertaining activities 

The festival will see a special corner for Majid TV channel, which will feature reading sessions, comic stories and educational activities and talent discovery for children. Other activities include the play ‘Alice in the Land of Dwarves’ and the musical ‘My World… the Story of the Magic Mirror,’ along with a range of other fun and interesting performances to be presented by ‘Samsam Bubbleman.’ 

Culinary Programme

The Culinary Programme will host a group of top Arab and foreign chefs, including Kuwaiti chef Intisar Ibrahim Al Mutawa, Head of the Zahr Centre for Professional Training and Food Manufacturing Consultant; Jordanian chef Rasha Hamdan and German chef Christina, author of the cookbook ‘Bembli for Family Cooking,’ which was the winner of the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in 2014. 

Other guests include Saransh Gulja and Mango Mallhi from India and Canadian chef Jennifer Lo, author of two bestselling children's books ‘Children's Kitchen’ and ‘Daily Kitchen of Children’ which put safety at the top of priorities in the kitchen.

Social Media Café

The festival will also include the Social Media Café as part of its main events lined up for its eighth edition. Interviews will be held with famous Arab and foreign celebrities via social media to discuss issues related to books and children and the impact of digital development and social media on children. The café will host 11 luminary figures throughout the 11-day festival.