Her Excellency Noura Bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, attended the launch of “Expo 2020 Dubai, Solidarity on the Ground Hug in the Sky” by Emirati writer Ali Abu Al Reesh, in the pavilion of the UAE Writers’ Union at the 31st edition of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The book launch took place during a panel discussion moderated by Sultan Al Amimi, President of the Board of the UAE Writers’. The event was also attended by His Excellency Mubarak Al Nakhi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture and Youth, and His Excellency Ali Bin Tamim, President of the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre.

The book was published with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Youth, the United Press and the UAE Writers’ Union. It’s part of a project aimed at enriching the UAE’s literary output and written content and supporting creators and intellectuals.

The book documents the writer Ali Abu Al Reesh’s visits to various country pavilions at Expo Dubai 2020. The writer kept a written journal of his Expo visits detailing his experiences of unique cultures, knowledge, ideas, customs and traditions, in a creative style.

The book includes a preface by Her Excellency Noura Bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, in which she said: “There are big events happening all around the world but Expo 2020 Dubai stood out from the rest, for many reasons and the fact that it coincided with the 50 years celebrations of the formation of the UAE. Expo 2020 Dubai was a global platform to introduce different cultures and customs, a meeting place for civilizations. It showcases the past, present and gave us a glimpse of the future of this planet. We saw many innovative ideas for the betterment of humanity at the show.  I am glad to see this world class event being captured in this book. Journaling the event will immortalise it for generations ahead, who will be proud of the achievements of their ancestors and the solid foundation they inherited from them, as per the author Ali Abu Al Reesh. “

During the session, Sultan Al Amimi said that the book is a qualitative addition to the UAE’s literary achievements and will bear testimony to Expo 2020 Dubai in the future, The book combines more than one literary style including  journal, diary and biography and used very fine poetic and literary language.

The Ministry of Culture and Youth is keen to be a key enabler for the development and improvement of the cultural environment in the UAE. Over the past several years, based on the guidance of the wise leadership, the country has strengthened its organisational and legislative infrastructure to support all components of the culture sector. It also motivates creators by launching initiatives and programmes to foster creativity and spread it all over the world, thereby enhancing the cultural achievement in the country and establishing its position as an incubator for creativity and creators.