Four Hundred Librarians Gather in Sharjah to Reimagine Knowledge in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

The 13th Sharjah International Library Conference brings together professionals from 16 countries to explore how libraries evolve as critical infrastructure for informed citizenship and human connection in an algorithmic age.

The Expo Centre Sharjah hummed with intellectual energy as four hundred librarians, academics and knowledge professionals convened for the 13th Sharjah International Library Conference, a gathering that speaks to something profound about how societies preserve and transmit understanding across generations. The conference, organised by the Sharjah Book Authority in collaboration with the American Library Association, unfolds alongside the 45th Sharjah International Book Fair, where 3,212 publishers from 126 countries present 1.7 million titles, creating a convergence of the digital and the printed, the contemporary and the timeless.

Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chief Executive Officer of the Sharjah Book Authority, opened the conference by drawing a line through history itself. He recalled the great libraries of antiquity, from ancient Mesopotamia through the Library of Alexandria to the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, each a repository of human achievement and a bridge between past and future. What distinguished those institutions, he suggested, was not merely what they held, but their role in advancing civilisation itself. Sharjah, he noted, continues this tradition through the vision of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, a commitment reflected in last year’s celebration of the centenary of the emirate’s libraries. He also acknowledged the steadfast support of H.H. Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Sharjah Book Authority, whose efforts have elevated books, publishing and reading across the region.

Yet Al Ameri posed a challenge that sits at the heart of this conference. “Today, it is not enough to pass on what we know to future generations,” he said. “Our responsibility is to give them the ability to question knowledge, develop it and move beyond its existing boundaries.” In an age where information flows algorithmically, where content may be suggested rather than curated, where verification and authority have become contested, this responsibility feels both more urgent and more complex.

Sam Helmick, Immediate Past President of the American Library Association, joined virtually to articulate why libraries have become what he called “critical infrastructure” for democratic societies. In what he termed the “content age”, algorithmic recommendation systems present material without always verifying its accuracy. Libraries, by contrast, help people navigate questions of how information is selected, presented and protected. “It’s my job to provide; the decision rests with the reader,” Helmick observed, capturing the ethical heart of librarianship: enabling autonomy rather than directing choice.

The conference examined how libraries respond to these shifts through practical innovation. Hajar Nagdy, Head of the Technical Skills Unit in the Library Sector at Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt, presented work on making artificial intelligence education accessible to the public. She distinguished sharply between teaching someone to use an AI tool and teaching them to evaluate it, emphasising that critical thinking about accuracy and ethical implications must underpin any genuine literacy in these technologies.

Other sessions explored how school libraries integrate with classroom learning. Sarah Khalil Qeshta and Lamees El Shafi from Dome School in Egypt described an approach that weaves the library into business and economics teaching, where students conduct market research, develop products and build financial skills while learning to identify reliable sources and transform information into actionable knowledge.

Dr. Wesam Yousef Musleh, a library and information science professional from the United Arab Emirates, presented an AI-based model for assessing reading health, examining how technology might diagnose readiness, speed, focus and comprehension in Arabic. Ayoub Khan, Head of Libraries and Culture at Warwickshire County Council and Director of Designing Libraries CIC, examined user experience design, asking how libraries might evolve their services to respond to the shifting needs of contemporary users.

The conference began on Saturday with workshops exploring design thinking and user experience, reflecting a philosophy that libraries must remain human-centred even as they embrace technological change. A Publisher and Librarian Networking session concluded the opening day, creating space for direct conversation and collaboration across the knowledge professions. The Big Heart Foundation is also using the book fair to seek donations of over 10,000 books, extending stories to children and communities supported by its global programmes.

What it means for Abu Dhabi

This gathering of four hundred professionals from sixteen countries signals something significant about Sharjah’s role in the region’s intellectual life. The emirate has positioned itself not merely as a host of cultural events but as a catalyst for the kind of sustained, rigorous conversation that shapes how knowledge institutions evolve. For Abu Dhabi and the wider emirates, this matters because librarians, educators and publishers gather here to solve real problems: how to serve diverse communities, how to harness technology without surrendering human judgment, how to preserve the act of reading in an age of algorithms.

The emergence of artificial intelligence as a central theme reflects a shared conviction that libraries must remain at the forefront of how societies navigate transformative change. When professionals from Egypt, the United Kingdom, Kuwait and the Emirates exchange ideas about reading assessment, user experience and ethical information practices, they build networks of expertise and practice that elevate standards across the region. These conversations, conducted in Sharjah, will shape how libraries across the Gulf serve their communities in years to come.

Report via the WAM news agency