SIEL: Over 700 exhibitors expected for the 30th edition

About 775 exhibitors representing 51 countries will participate in the 30th edition of the International Book and Publishing Fair (SIEL), which will take place in Rabat from April 18 to 27, under the High Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. This edition, which will bring together 311 direct exhibitors and 464 indirect ones, offers a vast selection of over 100,000 titles, covering all fields of knowledge and literary genres.

Presented on Monday in Rabat during a press conference, the 30th SIEL will feature the participation of numerous researchers, writers, and creators, Moroccan and international, offering a dense daily program with an average of 26 activities per day animated by over 762 speakers, through conferences, literary meetings, poetic evenings, and book presentations.

Organized by the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication, in partnership with the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region, the wilaya of the region, and the commune of Rabat, this cultural event plans tributes to emblematic figures of Moroccan creation, whose works have marked national culture and contributed to its radiance.

The program will also include tributes to personalities of Arab culture, organized in partnership with ALECSO, in addition to the awarding of literary prizes, notably the Ibn Battouta Prize for travel literature and the National Reading Prize.

This edition will honor the Emirate of Sharjah (United Arab Emirates), thus reinforcing its positioning as a global cultural center and its role in promoting Arab and Islamic culture. In this sense, Sharjah proposes a rich cultural, artistic, and civilizational program focusing on culture, literature, arts, and publishing, expressing its vision of the future of Arab culture and the role of publishers, through a delegation of Emirati writers, intellectuals, and publishers. The Sharjah Book Authority will present events illustrating the dynamics of the Emirati literary and creative scene, with the participation of over 15 publishing houses, as well as the organization of round tables to strengthen cultural exchanges with Morocco, workshops for children, heritage performances, and Arabic calligraphy sessions in collaboration with Moroccan calligraphers.

This year, the Fair will celebrate Moroccans around the world who contribute to the radiance of Moroccan identity beyond borders. Thus, a tribute will be paid to four prominent figures in the history of Moroccan immigration, notably Abdellah Bounfour (specialist in Amazigh studies), the late Ahmed Ghazali (playwright and museologist), Lalla Khiti Amina Benhachem Alaoui (the first Moroccan journalist on Belgian radio-television), and the late Driss Chraïbi, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the publication of his novel «The Goats » in Paris.

The literary program for the Moroccan diaspora will also include a poetic evening with readings of poems in Arabic, Amazigh, French, English, Italian, and Spanish. A retrospective of 10 pioneering films of Moroccan cinema on emigration/immigration is also planned.

Similarly, two special issues of magazines will be published: the first of the Diptyk magazine (dedicated to Moroccan visual artists around the world) and the second of the Tel Quel magazine (dedicated to novelists of immigration).

Speaking on this occasion, the Minister of Youth, Culture, and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaïd, emphasized that the choice of Sharjah as guest of honor illustrates the Fair’s commitment to consecrating the values of Arab cultural cooperation and the importance of opening up to others, highlighting the importance of strengthening ties between Moroccans around the world and their motherland.

He thus noted that his department works in concert with institutional, professional, and associative partners to make this 30th edition a cultural event of great scope, contributing to dynamizing the Moroccan cultural scene and reinforcing Rabat’s radiance as a cultural destination on both national and international levels, even as the city prepares to hold the title of World Book Capital in 2026.

On his part, the President of the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad (CCME), Driss El Yazami, indicated that the celebration of the late Driss Chraïbi will allow discovering his creative journey through an exhibition of photos and testimonies retracing his life, stating that this tribute to Moroccans around the world will enable a better understanding of the intellectual and cultural developments of the diaspora, notably the rise of women’s literature compared to the first generation of migrants.

As in previous editions, a rich and varied program will be dedicated to children and students. It will include 712 activities, including 660 educational workshops distributed across six specially designed spaces within the «Children’s Space». Additionally, a dedicated space will highlight a printed collection of comics inspired by the famous «Smurfs » series.