Book Week; The Necessity of Re-evaluating Our Relationship with Knowledge

The culture and publishing service of the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) reports that Ayyoub Dehghankar, the scientific, cultural, and managerial advisor to the Deputy for Cultural Affairs, issued a message on the occasion of Book and Reading Week, which is as follows:

‘In the name of Allah, who created man and taught him eloquence.

We begin the Week of Book and Reading in the name of the Creator who swore by the pen and what they write in lines; a God whose angels are the disseminators of His boundless mercy.

We know well that books are not only the guardians of our nation’s civilization and identity but also the foundation of dialogue, knowledge, and cultural development of the country. Book Week is an opportunity to reiterate that the future of our country’s culture and civilization depends on the quality of our relationship with books and reading.

Considering this principle, it is incumbent upon us, activists in the book sector, to know that the book and publishing industry in today’s world is experiencing one of the deepest transformations in its history. Technological developments, the emergence of digital and audiobooks, and the unparalleled role of data-driven analysis and management have changed the cultural management model in the book and publishing sector. Simultaneously, readers’ behavior has also changed; the new generation has grown up in a digital environment and requires new reading experiences.

In such circumstances, our country, with a forward-looking approach, while preserving the valuable legacy of print and paper publishing, should leverage the opportunities of the digital world to expand the culture of reading. Developing indigenous electronic publishing platforms, supporting creative publishers, producing audio and multimedia books, and educating children and adolescents on media literacy for reading are among our cultural policy priorities.

On the other hand, today’s bustling world needs a different and peaceful voice in the cultural arena; a voice that rises from the Persian language, a language that has been a messenger of love, empathy, and humanity for centuries. In an era where the world is entangled in distance and misunderstanding, we must build a bridge for dialogue between cultures through literary diplomacy, with books and the Persian language at its core.

During Book Week, let us remember that ‘book’ is a national asset and a symbol of collective wisdom. Preserving the publishing chain, supporting authors and translators, and establishing cultural cooperation networks with regional countries will be important steps for us to strengthen Iran’s position in the economy and cultural diplomacy of books.

May books remain the guiding light for the future and the bond connecting hearts.’