Of almost 2,800 Covid-19 tests performed during this year’s International Book Fair (FIL), not one returned positive, FIL General Director Marisol Shultz said during a summary of this year’s event, which ran November 27 to December 5.
Pandemic restrictions limited in-person attendance to one-quarter of the 800,000-plus visitors seen in recent years, Shultz said. The program featured 450 book presentations, 50 of them in virtual format, 232 literary and academic forums and 81 activities for professionals. The fair was the meeting point for 1,223 publishers from 37 countries, offering 240,000 titles in the exhibition area.
FIL President Raul Padilla said losses this year of around 18 million pesos should be earned from the 2022 event, just as long as there are no more restrictions.
Next year’s invited “country” will be Sharjah, one of the United Arab Emirates. On hand for the “takeover ceremony” from 2021 invitee Peru, Ahmad Al-Amari, president of the Sharjah Book Authority, said Mexico and his Emirate are “closer than people imagine,” despite the geographic distance.