Sharjah Book Fair Announces Translation Funding

By Hannah Johnson

Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) Director Ahmed al Amri announced on Tuesday the launch of a new translation grant of $300,000 from Sheik Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Qasimi to “bolster the role of translation among different cultures” and at the fair.

Entrance to the 30th Sharjah Book Fair

This translation grant is part of the Sharjah Book Fair’s new professional program (November 14 and 15), which brought publishers, agents and scouts from around the world to Sharjah to meet with their counterparts in the Arab world. Presentations and discussions about Arabic publishing, literature and translation were held on November 14, followed by a rights matchmaking session on November 15.

Rights agreements made during the professional program of the Sharjah Book Fair are eligible to receive funding from the SIBF translation grant — up to $1,500 for children’s books and up to $4,000 for all other titles. This year, the grant is open to rights deals into and from any language. Starting next year, the SIBF translation grant will be available to rights deals into and from Arabic.

Within an hour of the announcement about the SIBF translation grant, the first applications had already been submitted as a result of meetings during the matchmaking sessions.

The Sharjah International Book Fair takes place this year from November 16 – 26 and will celebrate its 30th anniversary. The fair attracts 750 publishers from 42 countries and over 400,000 visitors. SIBF is primarily a consumer fair where books are marketed and sold to readers, libraries and booksellers.

About the Author

Hannah Johnson

Hannah Johnson is the publisher of international book industry magazine Publishing Perspectives, which provides daily information and news about book markets around the world. In addition to building partnerships with international cultural and trade organizations, she works with the Frankfurt Book Fair to organize and support a number of its overseas initiatives. Hannah has also worked as the managing editor for an online media company, The Hooch Life, focused on craft distillers and cocktail experts. Prior to that, she worked as a project manager for the Frankfurt Book Fair’s New York office, managing various business and marketing activities.