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Cairo – Since the beginning of last March, Arab countries have taken stringent measures to combat the outbreak of the Coronavirus, including the prevention of rallies and the cancellation of activities in which large numbers participate, including book fairs, as so far they have been canceled or about 10 regional book fairs postponed, including the Bahrain Gallery, Baghdad Gallery, Riyadh Gallery, Abu Dhabi Tunisia Gallery and Gallery for book, as well as international book fairs, which were an outlet for promote the Arabic book abroad, translate it and develop the publishing industry.
Some Arab publishers believed that the publishing crisis existed before the epidemic, but today it is greatly aggravated by the suspension of sales, printing and publishing and the cancellation of all book fairs that represent an important platform for the publisher. and at the same time for the reader.
Paper and electronic book
Said Abdo, president of the Union of Egyptian Publishers, said in a statement to the MAP that the Arab book is suffering from a serious crisis after the postponement of a series of book fairs due to the outbreak of the Corona virus, which had a major impact on most publishers in the Arab world, especially since the sales map depends on Exhibitions.
Abdo explains that Corona has blocked the movement of printing, publishing, sales and marketing, both for individuals and for publishing agencies, adding that current indicators predict that the end of the pandemic in the near future is just a pipe dream.
It continues that this pandemic has come to exacerbate the severity of the challenges faced by the publishing sector in the Arab world, especially including poor distribution, weak marketing capabilities, problems related to shipping and customs, as well as the import of paper and printing machines from abroad, all difficulties that will lead to the collapse of the sector unless governments intervene to support it.
On the extent to which the publishing sector in Egypt has been affected by this epidemic, Abdo points out that a significant number of private libraries have closed their doors and several publishing houses have stopped, as is the case with many others around the world, adding that the industry losses since last March, the start date of the outbreak As of this June, it was estimated at $ 20 million.
Regarding the initiatives launched by the Association of Egyptian Publishers to alleviate the impact of the pandemic during the quarantine period, Abdo recalls the “Stay at home with the best friend” initiative, which aims to support culture and reading and encourage Egyptian families to read at home.
Regarding the possibility of the electronic book replacing the paper book, Abdo states that there is a growing interest in the digital book, but that the paper book has its own peculiarity that distinguishes it from the electronic book, namely the ease of transporting it from one place to another. other and to read it everywhere, which is what the digital book does not foresee. The reader is awkwardly attached to the computer screen.
Dalia Ibrahim, chairman of the board of directors of Renaissance House for Publishing, says in a similar statement that all industries have been severely affected by the Coronavirus crisis, including the publishing industry, and of course marketing activities have been hit enormously, as all international and local exhibitions were canceled and all libraries and various outlets were closed for periods of time. Long, which has led to a significant decline in book sales, indicating that the situation is very difficult for a large number of publishing houses, especially small publishing houses.
The publishing crisis existed before the epidemic, but today it has been greatly aggravated by the suspension of sales, printing and publishing and the cancellation of exhibitions
Ibrahim explains that although the Corona pandemic has negatively impacted sales, there are a number of other sales methods we can “pursue to increase sales and reach the reader through electronic sales, which is what we have already done in our organization. , after launching the “Nahdet Misr” app. “Which contains all our versions of cultural books and children’s books, which we sell via the app to reach the consumer effortlessly.”
He adds that the crisis has also affected the habits of many readers, as large numbers of them have started turning to electronics and audiobooks, which is a global trend that has been growing in recent years but has begun to increase at greater rates. after the Corona pandemic.
“Digital publishing is one of the most effective images now, but I don’t think it will ever replace print publishing, as printed books still have their fans and are in large numbers around the world,” he continues, adding that e-books will increase. and sales on electronic platforms such as Kindle and Google Play will increase, but it will not completely replace printed books.
He added: “Indeed, there are a good number of Arabic books on these global applications, but they need more marketing, as a large number of readers are unaware of the availability of Arabic books on these global platforms and of the number of publishers providing books from Durante these sites is still somewhat proportional to the number of actual publishers on the market.
Therefore, Dalia Ibrahim adds: “We expect it will take some time for readers to realize the availability of content and for publishers to move towards providing books in electronic format, which can help reduce costs of print on paper and book marketing in a more practical way. “
As for the extent of losses suffered by Arab publishers due to the cancellation of exhibitions, the Egyptian publisher says that digital platforms will not be able to compensate for the magnitude of the losses. Therefore, “We, as editors, have to study the current situation, develop alternative plans for exhibitions and discuss the establishment of virtual exhibitions, which is something that the Arab Publishers Union has already begun to discuss Members”.
He believes it is time for governments to step in to help large numbers of publishing houses, but we cannot overlook the large financial burdens governments currently bear to support the various affected sectors, particularly the health and education sectors, as well as support affected temporary workers who have lost their jobs as a result of the Corona pandemic. Which weighs down his budget.
Alleviate the crisis
Faced with the seriousness of the crisis experienced by the publishing industry and the Arab book, the Arab Publishers Union has taken the initiative to take a series of initiatives aimed at saving this sector from collapse.
In this context, the Arab Publishers Union recently sent an open letter to the leaders of Arab countries, through which it appeals to Arab governments to include the publishing sector within the various support packages that have been monitored to support economies of countries, indicating that there are “many social and economic sectors that are directly affected by the industrial sector. Publishing, including authors, translators and researchers, but also artistic designers, painters and the printing sector of all kinds.
The Union of Publishers has offered some solutions to help alleviate the impact of the crisis, including “allocating money to buy books from publishers through education ministries to strengthen school libraries, abolish publishing taxes and provide incentive packages for the publishing sector “.
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