Great retreat
According to the Syndicate of Publishers Union in Lebanon and member Union of Arab Publishers Samira Asi, the work of publishing houses in Lebanon has decreased by 80 percent.
Asi said in an interview with the site "Sky News Arabia": "Reading is no longer a priority for the Lebanese economic crisis that the country is experiencing"Attributing the cultural level in Lebanon to this level due to both economic and social factors.
Asi explained: "The book is no longer a priority for a large segment of the Lebanese due to the terrible economic situation in which the country finds itself. The main concern of the Lebanese citizen has become that of securing food and drink and obtaining any medicines.".
Following: "Books, especially cultural ones, have become a luxury in our time. from For the political book Its duration is less than 4 months. As for the heritage books, they are changing depending on the circumstances and changes affecting the companies, but the increased demand is currently underway Novels and cheap books And scientific".
Assi described the Lebanese publisher as energetic, who has made a distinct and individual effort despite all the circumstances that do not play in his favor, explaining: "We are currently dependent on exhibitions held in Arab countries and all Gulf countries, especially after the sharp decline in reader purchasing power in Lebanon.".
Assi revealed that the union is making unremitting efforts to open up new markets Lebanese in Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Africa and Nigeria, organizing exhibitions in these countries.
The cost of printing the book
The ASI has indicated that many publishing houses have closed their doors, and some are still struggling to survive, and there are those who have reduced their publications by 70 per cent, given that the cost of Print the book at $3,000 or more.
Asi is appreciated "The interaction of Arab countries with Lebanese publishing houses and the facilitation of their activities, especially in times of crisis".
Arab House for Science – Publishers production manager Ghassan Shabaro agrees with Assi’s statement that the economic crisis has had a negative impact on this industry.
Shbaro explained in an interview with the site "Sky News Arabia": "The number of publications has decreased compared to what it was before the crisis, and before 2019 the edition of book copies reached more than 3000 copies in a single edition, and today we have reached only 100 copies".
Shbaro attributed this to several reasons, including the use of the Internet, its applications and others Social media Which negatively affected the writer and the reader alike.
Shbaro pointed this out "Books are no longer a priority, except the novel, which is still at the forefront. The time of poetry and poets is over and the market is approaching The Persian Gulf By participating in international fairs organized in those countries".
An extraordinary youth initiative
Despite all the difficulties facing the publishing sector in Lebanon, initiatives to support this sector appear from time to time, such as an extraordinary youth initiative revealed by Lina Kreidieh, editorial manager of Dar Al-Nahda, in her interview with the site web. "Sky News Arabia" Where said: "This is an initiative that has contributed to the publication of books thanks to the collaboration between the Dar Al-Nahda of Beirut and the Arab Fund for Culture and Arts – Afaq, through which 20 collections of books have been published by a group of young people from all over the Arab world to encourage the return of cultural life to the younger educated generation.".
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After I lost Beirut Its title of capital of the book, today is losing its role as “Print of the East” in light of the successive crises and the absence of efforts to reactivate the cultural, intellectual and literary role of the city.
Great retreat
According to the Syndicate of Publishers Union in Lebanon and member Union of Arab Publishers Samira Asi, the work of publishing houses in Lebanon has decreased by 80 percent.
Assi said in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”: “Reading is no longer a priority for the Lebanese, in light of the… economic crisis that the country is experiencing”, attributing to this level the cultural level of Lebanon due to economic and social factors together.
Assi explained: “Books are no longer a priority for a large segment of the Lebanese, due to the dire economic situation the country is in. The main concern of the Lebanese citizen has become to secure food and drink and get any medicines.”
And he continued: “Books, especially cultural books, have become a luxury in our time. For For the political book Its duration is less than 4 months. As for the heritage books, they are changing depending on the circumstances and changes affecting the companies, but the increased demand is currently underway Novels and cheap books and scientific”.
Assi described the Lebanese publisher as an energetic person who makes a unique and individual effort despite all the circumstances that do not work in his favor.
Assi revealed that the union is making unremitting efforts to open up new markets Lebanese in Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Africa and Nigeria, organizing exhibitions in these countries.
The cost of printing the book
The ASI has indicated that many publishing houses have closed their doors, and some are still struggling to survive, and there are those who have reduced their publications by 70 per cent, given that the cost of Print the book at $3,000 or more.
Assi appreciated “the interaction of Arab countries with Lebanese publishing houses and the facilitation of their activities, especially in times of crisis”.
Arab House for Science – Publishers production manager Ghassan Shabaro agrees with Assi’s statement that the economic crisis has had a negative impact on this industry.
And Shabaro said in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”: “The number of publications has decreased compared to what it was before the crisis, and before 2019, the edition of book copies reached more than 3,000 copies in a number, and today we have only reached 100 copies.”
Shbaro attributed this to several reasons, including the use of the Internet, its applications and others Social media Which negatively affected the writer and the reader alike.
Shabaro underlined that “books are no longer a priority, with the exception of the novel, which is still at the forefront. The time of poetry and poets has passed, and the market is moving towards The Persian Gulf By participating in international fairs organized in those countries.
An extraordinary youth initiative
Despite all the difficulties facing the publishing sector in Lebanon, initiatives to support this sector appear from time to time, such as a remarkable youth initiative revealed by Lina Kreidieh, editorial manager of Dar Al-Nahda, in her interview with Sky News Arabia , where he said: “It is an initiative that has contributed to the publication of books Through the cooperation between Dar Al-Nahda in Beirut and the Arab Fund for Culture and Arts – Afaq, through which 20 collections of books have been published from a group of young people from all over the Arab world to encourage the return of educated younger generations to cultural life.
