Within the context of its endeavors to disseminate culture in all its forms and domains, and to allow the opportunity for generations from different age groups to know about the latest publications from all over the world, the State of Qatar is keen on organizing annually the Doha International Book Fair as part of its strategy aimed at highlighting its position as a beacon for enlightenment and creativity; and as one of the distinguished countries at the local and global levels culture-wise. Under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture, along with the organizational efforts by the Qatar Cultural and Heritage Events Center, the activities of the 31st Doha International Book Fair will be launched at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center. The Fair this year is organized under the theme of “Knowledge Is Light”, and it will run until the 22nd of January 2022. Hosting the Doha International Book Fair 2022 comes in light and hope to continue adding to the world journey of research, exploration and reflection; where the Fair presents the latest publications by humanity on culture, science and creativity in all fields, as the book stands for a window leading to the passion of researchers, innovators, scientists, writers, and others specialized in knowledge in order for them to develop the societies worldwide.
Doha is known for embracing creativity and innovation in every field that it sees as an arena for its influential action. It has given the world generously at all levels. Therefore, when it comes to promoting culture and heritage and enhancing Arab identity, Doha then definitely welcomes every thought and mind that drives its strong belief that Islamic culture is of authentic values and has its uniqueness within the cultures of the world. On this basis, and because it is the reality on more than one level, Doha concluded 2021 with more than 70 cultural events; which it organized being the capital of Islamic culture, due to the importance of cultural capital and the need to highlight the cultural and civilizational diversity characterizing it. These activities aimed to spread the Islamic culture, renew its content and revive its message. They also aimed to highlight cultural and civilizational achievements in Islamic arts, sciences and knowledge, promote dialogue between cultures and civilizations, and spread the values of coexistence and understanding among people. Earlier to that, and within the context of its strong presence as the capital of Arab culture, Doha produced a huge number of literary and scientific publications, as well as theatrical performances for adults and children, cultural weeks, music shows and concerts; aiming by this to communicate with the Arab cultural arena on the one hand, and with the entire open global cultural field on the other hand. In the context of this rich scene, the Doha International Book Fair kicks off in its 31st edition after completing a creative journey that spans half a century, characterized – among other things – by bringing together what is produced by humanity on culture, science and creativity in all fields. The Fair hosts more than (430) publishers from (37) countries, along with (90) distributing agencies.
The State of Qatar has made the annual Fair part of the cultural scene in the country, as it is considered a prominent cultural event celebrated by cultural, media and academic entities worldwide. It also highlights, along with its treasures of science and knowledge, the importance of spreading culture in all its forms and sectors, and provides the opportunity for the generations from different age groups to know about the latest works created and produced by big minds all over the world.
Not far from its core, this year’s Fair is characterized with cultural activities that contribute to enabling its visitors hone their talents, writers to communicate with the audience of readers, and intellectuals to exchange views and experiences among themselves. The scheduled activities promote dialogue and responsible freedom to make knowledge of value when linked to ethics. Many Qatari institutions and ministries and the Qatar National Library will participate in the Fair as well. Qatari publishing houses will have distinguished participations and they will be represented by “Dar Althaqafa- Culture Publishing House”, “Hamad Bin Khalifa University Press”, “Katara Publishing House”, and “Qatar University Publishing House”. The following publishers will also represent Qatar: Rosa, Zekreet, Al Watd, Al Sharq, Nabja, and Nawa. At the level of Gulf and Arab participation, participants include: the General Secretariat of the GCC countries, the Ministry of Heritage and Culture in the Sultanate of Oman, and the Sharjah Book Authority, in addition to the participation of the ministries of culture in the Kingdom of Morocco, Algeria, Sudan and Egypt represented by the General Egyptian Book Organization and the Egyptian National Library and Archives. Moreover, a number of American publishing houses will participate for the first time in this edition. The Italian Embassy in Doha will also participate in a special pavilion dedicated to Italy, in addition to the participation of the Bologna International Fair for Children’s Books. Besides, there will be participations by the embassies of Palestine, Syria, Japan, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Russia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan.