More than 1,000 local, regional and international publication houses representing 28 countries will enrich the national and Arab cultural movement at the 2021 Riyadh International Book Fair, which will be held on Oct. 1-10 and marks the biggest cultural event in Saudi Arabia in the book and publication sector. With an annual investment volume of SR4.5 billion from 500 Saudi publication houses, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is considered among leading countries in the publication sector that has witnessed a remarkable growth over the past 20 years. The writing and publication movement in Saudi Arabia is considered an attractive factor for major regional and international countries in terms of distribution and geographical coverage, which encourages international participation in Riyadh Book Fair as a cultural gain and stimulus environment that brings together stakeholders and forms a window to review the results of intellectual products in various sciences and knowledge. The Fair will host on Oct. 4 and 5 the Publishers' Conference, which is the first of its kind in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to be organized by the Literature, Publishing and Translation Commission. The Conference will discuss the conditions of the publication industry in the Arab world and efforts to develop the industry to reach competitive levels internationally through holding 12 panel discussions with the participation of 42 speakers from Saudi Arabia and the world. The panel discussions will cover several aspects related to conditions of the local and regional publication industry and means to address shortcomings so as to play a role in developing it and increasing its contribution to the Arab cultural development. The new edition of the fair is held under the theme "New Destination, New Chapter" and will see the participation of Iraq as the guest of honor with a program of Iraqi intellectuals and artists to present cultural symposiums and nights. This is the first edition of the fair to be organized by the Literature, Publishing and Translation Commission under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture. — SPA
