The 20th edition of the International Publishing and Book Fair in Casablanca, Morocco, where authors, editors and other professionals of theAyaks book industry reunite, along with the public, opens today, Wednesday, 13 February 2014, to among other things, debate strategic questions about the future of publishing and the promotion of languages.

Each year, the International Publishing and Book Fair, which is an authentic crossroad of cultures and flavours, takes on a new theme and offers a reflection on literature and our relationship with books at round tables and conferences.

The Executive Secretary, National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, alongside Yusuf Said (Writer, Gambia), Wilfred J. S. Bangura (Writer, Liberia), and Arthur Edgar Smith (Writer and Editor, Sierra Leone), will be on a round table on “National Literature: Languages and Borders. ” 

The Director-General, Centre for Black African Art & Civilization (CBAAC), Professor Tunde Babawale and immediate past Editor of The Guardian on Sunday and organiser of the Lagos Book Fair, Jahman Anikulapo, will be on a second panel with Laila B. Genoway  (Writer, Liberia), Raymond Ernest Denison De’Souza George (Writer and Senior Teacher in the Department of History and Cultural Studies, FBC/USL, Sierra Leone), Patience Sonko-Godwin (Gambia), will be talking on, “The West African Integration and Cultural Change: The Case of ECOWAS Member States,” which will be moderated by Nouredine Zouitni (Writer, Morocco).

The fair is also an opportunity to make some new discoveries, especially during its poetry and theatre evenings, or at readings and book signings; and two Nigerian publishing companies, Kraft Books (Steve Shaba) and Concept Publications (Dele Oladunjoye) are participating.

© Nico news