Put literacy at the heart of AI era, Bodour tells publishers at Malaysia meet

Sheikha Bodour Al Qasimi, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Education and Book Culture, and former President of the International Publishers Association (IPA), delivered a forthright address at the IPA World Congress 2026 in Kuala Lumpur on the future of publishing and global literacy.

Speaking under the Congress theme, ‘Publishing Intelligence: Sustaining Forward’, Her Highness’s keynote, titled ‘Reading for Literacy’, explored how publishing can harness innovation and emerging technologies while upholding its responsibility to broaden access to books and build reading cultures.

Drawing on decades of engagement with the global publishing community, Her Highness Sheikha Bodour argued that the defining challenge facing publishers is not merely producing more content, but ensuring that more people can access it.

After the keynote, Her Highness joined publishing consultant Emma House for a fireside conversation on practical approaches to closing the global literacy gap. The discussion explored the role of publishers in strengthening reading ecosystems, the opportunities and responsibilities presented by AI, the importance of partnerships across governments and international organisations, and the need to support a more inclusive and representative publishing leadership.

Her Highness Sheikha Bodour Al Qasimi said: ‘For me, publishing has always been about expanding opportunity, strengthening understanding and ensuring children discover the transformative power of reading. As an industry, we have to ensure new technologies help us reach more readers, in more languages and more communities. The future of publishing will be defined as much by who we enable to read, learn and thrive, as by the books we bring into being.’

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Having served as President of the IPA from 2021 to 2022, Her Highness Sheikha Bodour has long championed literacy, publishing innovation and international collaboration, while advocating for greater diversity and inclusion across the global industry.

Her participation at the IPA World Congress reflected that continuing commitment, bringing her together with publishers from around the world to explore how the industry can build a more accessible, resilient and sustainable future for reading.