“Image of Italy: Books as worldwide ambassadors for Italian culture” is the title of the Italian cultural initiative to the Cairo’s International Book Fair.
This year is the third time Italy takes part to the Cairo’s book fair.
The Fair takes places in the Eliopolis exhibition district until the 2 of February 2009.
Tomorrow, Thursday 22 January is the day dedicated to Italy. “A press conference with Egyptian and international journalists accredited to the Fair is scheduled for Thursday morning. This will be followed by a meeting of the Italian delegation chaired by Maurizio Fallace, Director General for Books, Cultural Institutes and Copyright at the Italian Ministry of Culture, along with Farouk Hosni, the Egyptian Cultural Minister”, it’s written on the Italian foreign ministry website.
People interested in Italian culture will be able to visit three stands.
The first includes a selection of catalogues of the most prestigious exhibitions produced by the Ministry [of foreign affairs] in recent years.
The second stand – dedicated to Italian cultural institutions and bodies – will showcase publications by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Monte dei Paschi di Siena Bank, the Istituto dell’Enciclopedia Italiana and Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato, and the Italian Institute for Africa and the Orient (ISIAO).
The third stand will display the most distinguished publications produced by over 20 publishers and printers in the region, including: Palombi, Colombo, Gangemi, De Luca, Armando and Peliti.
Puglia Region’s Department for the Mediterranean will be presenting a selection of publications on art and Euro-Mediterranean themes produced by local publishers.
The Italian Cultural Institute in Cairo will also have a stand showcasing publications by Italian authors and information on the work of the Institute.
The Fair will see over 1000 exhibitors this year, from 30 countries from around the world. Over 2.5 million visitors are expected to attend. Italy’s participation has been organised by the “Centro per la Promozione del Libro”, a cultural organisation active since 1984 in promoting books and culture, in cooperation with the Italian Cultural Institute in Cairo.
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