Zayed made the remarks during his first press conference on Tuesday after his election in July as head of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, succeeding Mostafa El-Fiqi, whose five-year helm ended in May 2022.
“Bibliotheca Alexandrina is the world’s beacon of knowledge, culture and science,” said Zayed, stressing the importance of continuing the path of success that was paved by former library directors Ismael Serageldin and El-Fiqi.
Zayed said he would launch a large reading competition to encourage reading among the youth and children in Egypt’s suburbs, villages and all governorates.
He also said he will work to correct a misconception some people have that “this library is for all people and not for a certain age group or for a certain social class.”
“We will do justice to the library and will put it in its rightful place among the world’s famous libraries,” Zayed said.
He also highlighted the important role played by the library’s Calligraphy Centre, which has preserved 6,000 rare original documents, 120,000 pictorial documents, and 15,000 rare books.
After the press conference, Zayed invited the attendees to witness the opening of the tenth round of the International Biennale for the Artist’s Book on 30 August in the BACC East and West Exhibition Halls.
Under the concept of ‘The Book or the Storytelling,’ 18 artists from Egypt, Columbia and Canada displayed their unique artistic works using symbols and letters in their stories.
In addition, 23 artworks were presented by Arte Dos Graficos Gallery in Bogota, Colombia – in cooperation with the Embassy of Colombia in Cairo. The exhibition also features 25 artworks from La Diane Française publishing house in Nice, France.
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