2.4.26
The 57th annual Cairo International Book Fair closed yesterday after setting new records for attendance, the Arab Weekly reports. More than 6.2 million visitors are believed to have attended the fair, which ran from January 21 to February 3. Over 1,450 publishing houses from 83 countries were represented at the fair, which has evolved to be “more than a marketplace” for publishing in Africa and the Middle East; this year’s gathering offered “a sprawling forum for debate, performance, and encounter, with dedicated programs for children and young people, subsidized book schemes, and initiatives designed to widen access to reading.”