The month of Ramadan in which the Holy Quran, the Book of eternal guidance, was revealed, is one of the greatest months for all Muslims.
It is a month of worship and good deeds and believers spend more time to recite the Quran. In addition, Ramadan also witnesses other religious and recreational activities after Iftar everyday. We see television channels and public and private institutions crowded with cultural, educational and entertainment programmes along with competitions that give advantage of the holy month to educate, raise awareness and encourage people to read, think and get refreshed.
The initiative by the Ministry of Culture to organise the first edition of Ramadan Book Fair in Souq Waqif this year was one of the significant steps to enrich scientific and cultural activities in the holy month.
The nine-day event, concluded on Saturday, was witnessed a ceremony during which the Minister of Culture H E Sheikh Abdulrahman bin Hamad Al Thani honoured representatives of the participating parties, organisers, supporters, and media outlets that covered the Doha International Book Fair 2022, and those who participated in the seminars.
The first edition of Ramadan Book Fair represented an opportunity for citizens and residents to invest in reading, learning and developing awareness on different fields of knowledge, as the book fair was aimed at promoting a culture of reading by providing Qatari residents with good collection of books in different languages and various subjects. The event also featured programmes for all ages through lectures, seminars, art workshops and theatre-staged shows for children throughout the nine-days besides workshops on Islamic arts and several talks that took place daily.
The book fair was also an opportunity to support publishing houses to reach more readers. Since the event took place in the holy month of Ramadan, it focused on religious books and relevant activities. The fair also displayed old books and manuscripts dating back over 300 years to introduce children about the civilization and humanitarian contributions of Arab and Islamic nations.
Thirteen local publishing houses participated in the first edition of the event along with 35 publishers from nine countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, India and Australia. A total number of 47,000 books were displayed in the fair. The State of Qatar, which has completed its preparations to host the largest global sporting event later this year, is also becoming a torchbearer of cultural activities and a place where the light of science and knowledge meet together.
