Sharjah: His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, on Thursday evening received President Emmanuel Macron of France during his visit to Sharjah Pavilion at the Paris Book Fair 2018 in Paris.
The cultural event is being held from Friday to March 19.
The French President, accompanied by the Sharjah Ruler, toured the pavilion of Sharjah, which is a distinguished guest at the current edition of the exhibition in appreciation of its contributions and initiatives in supporting the culture and intellectuals in the Arab and Islamic worlds, and its promotion of cultural movement in its various literary and artistic fields as well as its efforts in supporting translation, especially into French.
The Sharjah Ruler briefed the French President on the most prominent institutions and supporters of the book and writers in the UAE in general and Sharjah in particular, highlighting Sharjah’s pioneering role in serving the community and making it closer to the book through its various initiatives.
Concluding the tour, Shaikh Sultan presented Macron with a number of his historic publications and literary works translated into French.
Shaikh Sultan had earlier visited the Paris Book Fair along with his wife, Shaikha Jawaher Bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, in the presence of Shaikha Budoor Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, founder and CEO of Emirates Publishers Association and Kalimat Group.
During his tour of the fair, Shaikh Sultan visited the Sharjah Pavilion, which houses a number of publishing institutions including Sharjah Book Authority, Sharjah Department of Culture, Sharjah Institute for Heritage, Dr Sultan Al Qasimi Centre of Gulf Studies, Dara, Sharjah Media Corporation, UAE Writers Union, Emirates Book Association, UAE Publishers Association, UAE Board on Books for Young People, Sharjah Libraries, Knowledge without Borders, ‘1001 Titles’ initiative, Al Qasimi Publications, Kalimat Group, and Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature.
On the sidelines of the visit, Shaikh Sultan held a meeting with intellectuals, writers and the educated during which he discussed a number of friendly topics of mutual concern in the cultural fields and means of developing the cultural reality in the Arab world. Following the meeting, Shaikh Sultan received a number of books and literary publications as gifts from several intellectuals and writers.
The opening of the Paris Book Fair was attended by several UAE and French senior officials in addition to chief editors of a number of local and federal Arabic and English newspapers from the UAE.
