Qatar National Library (QNL), a member of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), will participate in the 26th Doha International Book Fair taking place from December 2 – 12. The Fair will be held at the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC), and QNL’s booth will be located at C36.
Organised by Dar Al Kutub and the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, the Doha International Book Fair is an annual event that provides a unique platform for a diverse range of publishers from Qatar, the region and the world, to showcase their books to the Qatari community.
In accordance with Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), QNL supports the nation’s journey towards a knowledge-based economy by spreading knowledge, nurturing imagination, cultivating creativity and preserving the nation’s heritage for future generations.
The QNL booth at this year’s Book Fair will highlight various sections of the library including the breadth of resources available through their online databases, training programmes and social engagement activities. Interactive presentations will offer attendees a glimpse into the rich and varied items comprised within the Heritage Collection such as rare manuscripts, archival documents and historical photographs.
The booth at the Book Fair will showcase the library’s landmark initiative, the Qatar Digital Library (QDL), which was launched in October 2014, and provides free access to an extensive online collection of digital resources, and is an invaluable reference point for researchers about the history of Qatar, the Gulf region and the Arab Islamic heritage and sciences. QDL is an outcome of a joint project between Qatar Foundation, QNL and the British Library.
A demonstration of QDL, QNL’s online portal and landmark initiative, which provides access to over 500,000 digitised historical and archival material, will be provided in recognition of the QDL’s one year anniversary. The QNL team will also be on hand to help visitors register for free and have access to the library’s wealth of digital resources.
Featuring something for everyone, QNL activities dedicated to parents and children will include early literacy playtime and parent information sharing, puppet playtime for kids, and storytelling.
Highlighting QNL’s continuous contribution to preserve the nation’s heritage, Dr Claudia Lux, Project Director of QNL, said, “The 26th annual Doha International Book Fair provides us with a great opportunity to showcase the library`s various resources, services, and collections and highlight the Library’s outstanding contribution to the development of the nation’s educational and research sectors.
Engineer Saadi Al Said, Director of Administration and Planning at QNL said, “As QNL participates in the Doha International Book Fair for the second time, it has become evident to us that the importance of events of this calibre being held in Qatar greatly influences how our community interacts with libraries and educational institutions.”
He added, “Last year’s event was a resounding success with our booth attracting a lot of keen interest from visitors. We plan to build on that success by presenting various features of QNL in an engaging and informative manner.”
Last year, the Book Fair celebrated its Silver Jubilee anniversary and welcomed nearly 700,000 visitors, as well as 432 publishers from 29 different countries, including Qatar.
QNL’s team will be onsite at the Book Fair to welcome visitors to the library’s booth from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm – 10:00 pm during weekdays and from 4:00 pm – 10:00 pm on Fridays.
Alongside a series of other engaging events in December, QNL will participate in Qatar National Day’s celebrations organized by Qatar Foundation at Darb Al Saay from 8 – 20 December 2015. The library will also organise free training sessions on selected Arabic online resources on December 15. The training sessions are open to all.
As part of the library’s monthly Book Discussion series, QNL invites the community to take part in a session around the popular book ‘From My Sisters' Lips’, authored by Na’ima B. Robert, on December 9.
To learn more about QNL’s upcoming events and programmes, please visit the library’s website: www.qnl.qa
