Tétouan: 19th International Comic Strip Forum (FiBaD)

Organised by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication, in partnership with the National Institute of Fine Arts of Tétouan, the association Chouf and its partners — the French Institute of Morocco, Wallonia-Brussels, the Belgian Comic Strip Centre, and the Cervantes Institute — as well as Arab, African, local and national partners, FiBaD has, over the years, established itself as an essential international cultural event.

A true platform for meeting, creation and exchange around the ninth art, the event will bring together artists, authors, researchers, students, enthusiasts, as well as Moroccan and international publishing houses. FiBaD will offer young authors the opportunity to present their projects and build collaborations with professionals in the sector.

The Forum will host guests from France, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Mali, Benin, the Central African Republic, and Spain, thereby affirming FiBaD’s professional and intercultural dimension.

A programme open to all forms of comic art

From 17 to 22 May, Tétouan will come alive with a programme combining exhibitions, workshops, screenings, professional meetings, debates, signing sessions, children and youth activities, as well as discovery spaces dedicated to comics, manga, illustration, and animated film.

Open to the general public from Sunday 17 May at Place du Nouveau Feddan, the Comic Strip Village will offer a vibrant and friendly space featuring album sales stands, souvenir photo areas, daily artistic activities and exhibition routes.

The official opening ceremony, scheduled for Monday 18 May 2026 at the Spanish Cinema, will be marked by a series of tributes to emblematic figures of artistic creation and Moroccan comics, notably Abdelilah Nacef (in tribute to the School of Fine Arts of Tétouan), Aziz Oumoussa for his lifetime artistic career, and Salah Eddine Fellani as an emerging young talent.

Among the highlights of this edition is the presentation of the comic book album The Five Continents on Monday 18 May at the Comic Strip Village (Place du Nouveau Feddan), in the presence of the story’s hero, Moroccan adventurer Hassan Baraka. Produced in collaboration with the Tanger Med Foundation, the album highlights values of perseverance, self‑transcendence, openness to the world and inspiration for youth, through the exceptional journey of this internationally recognised explorer. This event will offer the public an opportunity to engage with Hassan Baraka about his human and sporting experience, in an original dialogue between real-life adventure and comic creation.

African talent, youth and inclusion at the heart of the Forum

FiBaD also reaffirms its commitment to African talent and emerging voices in contemporary comics. This year, more than 60 entries have been submitted for the African Talent Award, coming from Guinea, Congo-Brazzaville, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Benin, Madagascar, the Central African Republic, Rwanda, Côte d’Ivoire and Morocco. Ten authors will be selected, among whom three winners will be awarded.

This 19th edition will celebrate African talent through the awarding of the International Comic Prize: African Talents 2026, as well as the National Prize for Best Comic Album Project, each endowed with 30,000 dirhams.

The Forum will place strong emphasis on children, youth and artistic transmission through a dedicated children’s space offering drawing workshops, animated film screenings, a reading corner, comic-themed treasure hunts and creative activities led by INBA students.

A special place will be given to manga art, in collaboration with Manga Arabia and Shotaku.

The Forum will also emphasise social inclusion through its collaboration with the ATIL association, which is committed to the inclusion of children and young people. In this context, the ATIL Comic Award for Inclusion will be organised to encourage young creators to promote values of diversity, expression and citizenship through comics.

On Thursday 21 May, the closing ceremony will feature the presentation of trophies to participants and partners, along with a light painting performance by Coke Riobóo — Spanish director, animator and composer, and winner of the 2007 Goya Award for Best Animated Short Film.

Through this new edition, the International Comic Strip Forum of Tétouan reaffirms its ambition to make Tétouan — the White Dove of the Mediterranean — a key crossroads for graphic creation and a cultural bridge between continents.