Media Center

H.E Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, the President of Bahrain Authority for Culture & Antiquities, headed the high-ranking delegation of BACA to Riyadh International Book Fair 2019, held under the auspices of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, on 13 March 2019. Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan, Minister of Culture, inaugurated Riyadh International Book Fair 2019 Under the theme "The Book is the Gate of the Future", in the presence of the deputy Culture Minister, H.E Hamed bin Mohammed Fayez,  Minister of Information and H.E Turki  bin Abdullah Al-Shabanah, as well as diplomats, various Saudi and Bahrain media figures and personalities, Arab and Foreign countries.

Speaking on the occasion, H.E Shaikha Mai bint Mohammad Al Khalifa expressed her greatest sense of pride and gratitude to Saudi Arabia for choosing Bahrain as the Guest of Honour of the Riyadh International Book Fair, lauding the relentless fruitful  efforts deployed by both the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Information in Saudi Arabia to develop and enhance the local and regional cultural scene. H.E added saying “ Culture once again carries its crucial role as a citadel of civilization dialogue anchoring agent, bringing together, this time, the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Kingdom of  Saudi Arabia in a unified cultural context. Both kingdoms share the same vision of an exceptional cultural presence and endeavor; today Bahrain is the Guest of Honour of Riyadh International Book Fair 2019, last year it was Saudi Arabia at Bahrain International Book Fair, which was held in celebration of Muharraq as the Capital of Islamic Culture 2018”.

Commenting on the importance of this book fair in enhancing the scene in the region, H.E said “Books are still considered the best way to express our conviction that our countries have been bestowed by an  important increasing cultural  public awareness  that strongly advocates them to be lighthouses of civilization centers. We have, today, an opportunity lying before us to take the initiative and restore the glory of Arab publication movement to its heydays and the pioneer role it well deserves”.

H.E has also pointed out that Bahrain Culture Authority’s program reflects the richness and diversity of Bahraini culture, through a series of events and activities that will shed lights on current prominent culture figures, intellectuals and  artists from Bahrain. H.E added that visitors of the fair will have the opportunity to discover the last Bahraini publication, in addition the cultural program.
      
Bahrain’s participation at this fair reflects the historical deep-rooted ties established between the two kingdoms and the strong will to further consolidate these brotherly relations, given that Saudi Arabia was the Guest of Honour of the last book fair in Bahrain.

Culture Authority pavilion will host 13 cultural events including poetry nights, seminars and children’s programs over the course of the fair. There will be also a series of workshops on creative short story writing, a storytelling session for traditional Bahraini stories, participatory readings with children, a workshop on how to build a home library, and a series of workshops.

Bahrain Authority for Culture & Antiquities pavilion will also  feature all kinds of different literary and cultural publications, especially those translated titles and books produced by Knowledge Transfer Project, as well as other diverse cultural publications. In addition,  BACA’s pavilion will  also showcase a variety of publications about literature, history, archaeology, heritage, art and culture.