Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi,  ruler of Sharjah, inaugurated Sharjah Publishing City (SPC),  a special zone for hundreds of publishers and stakeholders in the publishing industry.
The major new project of Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) aims to provide an investment environment for publishers from around the world through its provision of “world-class” publishing services that include printing, licensing and distribution.
Phase one of the landmark project, located near the intersection of Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road and Dhaid Road, opened with room for 550 publishers. Further stages of the project will build capacity to print a million books daily. Also present were Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Crown Prince of Sharjah; Shaikh Sultan Bin Ahmad Al Qasimi, chairperson of the Sharjah Media Council; and other Shaikhs.
Extending over 40,000 square metres, SPC provides 300 furnished offices for business owners and publishers, plus an area of 6,000 square metres for investors who wish to create their own spaces.
The city includes more than 20 meeting rooms, stores, service facilities, a data centre, a public administration branch of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Sharjah.
Shaikh Sultan also witnessed two signing ceremonies during the inauguration - the first between SBA and the Arab Writers Union (AWU), which stipulates the establishment of a new AWU headquarters at SPC; and the second between SBA and the Emirates Writers Union (EWA), which provides for the translation of the works of 40 Emirati EWA authors from Arabic into English, French and Brazilian.
Shaikh Sultan also witnessed the launch of Publishers Weekly Arabic Magazine, which is being issued by SBA in collaboration with Publishers Weekly, a journal that focuses on the book industry, readers, critics, the publication of new titles and distribution.