Rabat – Morocco’s Red City Marrakech will host its first-ever English Book Festival between 25 and 27 November, featuring both Moroccan authors that write in English and English speakers who write about Morocco.
The event is a “celebration” of Marrakech and Morocco, as well as the work that the authors have produced, the organizers indicated in a statement. The authors will take part in discussions centered around their writing and the influence of Marrakech and Morocco.
The Marrakech English Book Festival will also include a series of discussions and workshops for the benefit of young Moroccan writers on how to publish their work in English in Morocco, “driving the role of the English language in the country,” the statement added.
The source also highlighted the key part reading has in the development of language, arguing that it is a skill that “increases awareness and knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, the building blocks of the language, while also helping students to gain more confidence in their speaking, writing, critical thinking and creativity.”
The festival will dedicate an entire day to “children’s literature celebrations,” which will include exhibitions, readings, illustrations, and theater workshops. The activities will take place at the British Academy School of Marrakech.
Perfect time, perfect place
The three-day event is taking place “at the perfect time in the perfect place,” the statement noted, explaining that “Marrakech and Morocco have long been fascinating locations for writers in all languages, particularly those who write in English.”
They also stressed the growing popularity and enthusiasm surrounding the English language in Morocco, saying that it is “viewed as an essential skill as well as a language unhindered, in Morocco at least, by any colonial baggage.”
“The young Moroccans guiding their country forward will use English to communicate across the globe, empowered by the increased presence of English through all levels of education,” the source added.
In clear recognition of its global dominance, Morocco has been gradually integrating the English language within the country’s education reform in recent years. The move comes as many Moroccans, notably youth, call for adopting English as the North African country’s first foreign language, in a bid to replace French.
More than just books
In addition to literary discussions, the three-day event will include culinary workshops and classes, which will take place at the Maison Arabe. The cooking activities will feature international and Moroccan chefs.
The Marrakech English Book Festival will also promote the work of its official charity, Education For All (EFA) organization, the organizers said, emphasizing that it is the “most important part of the festival.”
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All profits from the three-day event will be donated to EFA, which is dedicated to supporting the education of girls in Morocco’s rural areas.
Morocco World News (MWN) is the exclusive English-speaking media partner of the Marrakech English Book Festival.
