Dr Sheikh Sultan interacts with children during the SCRF in Sharjah on Wednesday.

The initiative stems from His Highness's vision to invest in books across varied disciplines in both Arabic and foreign languages to open new horizons for the younger generations to enrich their knowledge and imaginations, and at the same time, reinforce the role of libraries in children’s education even in a digital-first environment.

SCRF 2023 is aimed at supporting Sharjah's efforts to provide a comprehensive reading and creative environment that focuses on educating and refining the talents of children and youth.

On Wednesday, Dr Sheikh Sultan opened the highly anticipated 14th annual Sharjah Children's Reading Festival.

The region’s largest festival of its kind dedicated to stimulate creativity in young minds and bring them closer to books, runs for 12 days until May 14 in Expo Centre Sharjah and carries the theme "Train your brain."

Over the course of 12 days, SCRF will provide children and families with an opportunity to pick up the latest titles in children's literature from 93 Arab and 48 foreign publishers offering their latest works during the festival. Top participating countries in this edition include the UK, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the US, Australia, India, Pakistan, Algeria, and Iraq. This year, the UAE tops the list with 77 publishers, followed by Lebanon with 12 publishers, alongside many others.

Gulf Today / WAM