Sheikha Bodour and Mayor Benjamina Karic pose for the photograph in Sarajevo. WAM

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

President of the International Publishers Association (IPA), Sheikha Bodour Al Qasimi has travelled to Sarajevo to meet with stakeholders from the publishing community of Bosnia and Herzegovina as they continue in their recovery and response to the challenges presented by the global pandemic, and by increasing global instability.

Underscoring the IPA’s mission to support and promote publishing for all of its members, Sheikha Bodour engaged in discussions with members of the Community of Publishers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and enjoyed productive conversation with the mayor of Sarajevo Benjamina Karic.

During her meeting with Mayor Karic, Sheikha Bodour explained the work the IPA is undertaking and shared her belief in the importance of a resilient and sustainable publishing sector – underscoring the vital role a vibrant and active reading culture has in society as a whole.

She then listened to Mayor Karic as she shared information about projects in Sarajevo, including the restoration of a library which was damaged in the Bosnian war of the early 1990s. The IPA President commended Mayor Karic for undertaking such an inspirational project and for supporting the publishing community.

Sheikh Bodour chairs a meeting with Bosnian publishers in Sarajevo. 

During extremely valuable discussions with the Community of Publishers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bodour listened to, and took note of the concerns and ideas of its members.

She encouraged Bosnian publishers to take advantage of the world-class learning resources and the upskilling and capacity-building opportunities offered by the newly launched IPA Academy – an online learning portal designed to provide crucial support to help publishers bridge skills gaps and adapt to ongoing challenges facing the global publishing industry.

The IPA Academy contains an ambitious program of high-value and carefully curated learning opportunities designed by the IPA in conjunction with New York University (NYU), Oxford Brookes University, and the Publishing Training Centre, UK, and is free to all IPA members.

Finally, Bodour reiterated the need for solidarity and cooperation from all publishing stakeholders to strengthen the global publishing framework and to future-proof the industry.

She explained that cooperation and solidarity are essential and building a more sustainable, diverse, inclusive and collaborative global book ecosystem and gave members of the Community of Publishers of Bosnia and Herzegovina an update on recent developments with the IPA’s International Sustainable Publishing and Industry Resilience (InSPIRe) initiative.