Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – The community campaign to support sustainable reading was launched by the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre in February of this year. It coincided with National Reading Month and achieved significant successes during the first half of this year. The campaign carried the slogan “Knowledge Society, Knowledge of Society”. This was in line with the UAE’s declaration of 2025 as the “Year of Society”. Furthermore, this was within the centre’s strategic vision, which aims to promote the Arabic language and instill a culture of reading in society of all age groups.
The campaign, which extends throughout the year, stressed the importance of reading as an effective tool for embodying the “Year of Society” principles. It aimed to empower the Arabic language as an authentic component of society’s identity that expresses its heritage and values. Additionally, it aimed to consolidate the culture of reading. The campaign sought to increase society’s passion for it and encourage new generations to adopt reading as a daily habit that expands their horizons and develops their talents.
Through its activities, including the programs of the 34th session of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, it succeeded in highlighting the importance of reading. This showcased its role in individual and societal development.
The campaign included more than 2,000 creative activities, comprising 250 main events and initiatives. These were implemented in cooperation with more than 100 governmental and private entities. About 400 creators and over 15 universities participated. The campaign targeted over 50,000 societal segments in schools, universities, institutions, and public places. This reflects the campaign’s superior ability to attract participants, creators, and the public. This attraction was achieved either directly through attending events or indirectly through the media and social media platforms.
His Excellency Saeed Hamdan Al Tunaiji, Executive Director of the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language, said the community campaign succeeded in meeting the targeted performance indicators. It achieved its goals aimed at making reading a sustainable habit in community life.
He added that after six months of qualitative activities covering almost all sectors of work and life, the campaign continues its journey until the year’s end. It features a renewed and diverse package of activities distributed over 14 knowledge fields. These affect different society segments regardless of ages, interests, and cultures. Each field includes a studied group of initiatives, seminars, and reading sessions. Dialogue meetings, workshops, and other innovative activities are part of this. These initiatives reflect the center’s commitment to serving the community. Moreover, they aim to consolidate cultural sustainability and enhance the Arabic language’s presence as a language of innovation, creativity, science, and arts.
All departments of the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language and its cultural projects participated in the campaign’s activities and programs. They covered most of the community’s interests.
These events included reading clubs, creative writing workshops, intellectual lectures, and dialogue meetings with creators and thinkers.
The campaign also organized sessions of the Kalima Reading Club in its branches. This included artistic seminars, bookcase tours, specialized courses, poetry evenings, and story readings.
Activities also included programs concerned with folklore and artificial intelligence technology. They featured programs for radio and educational entertainment. Additionally, they included producing video clips and organizing field visits to libraries, schools, universities, and historical sites.
Among the qualitative initiatives, the campaign launched “Digital Reading Month” through the center’s literary awards platforms. These include the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, the Generation Treasure Award, and the Gold Narration Award. It witnessed a high demand for participation.
Other community initiatives were also launched, including “100 Stories from Our Community,” “We Read for Children,” and “The Child Reads.” These efforts concluded with the organization of an introductory session for the “Friends of the Arabic Language” competition.
The qualitative campaign continues its valuable activities to include many programs and initiatives. Most notably are the “Reading in Vital Facilities” initiative in Abu Dhabi and its cities. The “What to Read in a Week?” initiative and the “Let’s Read in Arabic” event aim to create a space for exchanging knowledge and ideas among reading enthusiasts. This contributes to maximizing the campaign’s impact and achieving tangible societal results.
These programs and initiatives reflect the efforts of the Abu Dhabi Language Center to enhance the Arabic language’s presence among all members of society. Additionally, they aim to consolidate the culture of reading.
