Doha, Qatar, November 18, 2012
The Arab Federation for Libraries & Information (AFLI) concluded its 23rd annual conference on Tuesday, November 20 at the Hilton Doha, Qatar. The event, entitled “Integrating Public and Private Solutions in Promoting an Arabic Knowledge Society,” was hosted under the auspices of His Highness, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar.
The conference opened with an awards ceremony. The most coveted prize is the “Naseej Best Paper” award, which is aimed at encouraging research and development in the knowledge and information fields. This year, Prof. Dr. Ali bin Ibrahim Al-Namla won the award, which consisted of USD4000, a certificate of merit from AFLI, and a commemorative plaque.
Eng. Abdullah Al-Turaifi, Vice President of Naseej, described the conference as a unique opportunity for those working in the knowledge society field to share their experience and knowledge. By building on cooperative arrangements established at the conference, library departments from both public and private fields throughout the Arab world can develop enhanced programs for their mutual benefit, he said. He also affirmed that the event represents an ideal means to stay connected to information units abroad and to initiate new projects and work collaboratively toward valuable solutions.
Eng. Abdullah Al-Turaifi commented on the Naseej Award: “As part of its efforts to contribute to the spread of knowledge and information throughout the Arab world, Naseej is honored to participate in the development of the knowledge and information community in the region by assisting in the creation and ongoing support of professionals and pioneers in the field of information and libraries”.
Dr. Hassan Alsereihy, President of AFLI, described the main purpose of the conference as encouraging libraries and information centers to improve and develop their knowledge systems through sharing their valuable ideas, information and recommendations.
The 23rd annual conference focused on four main themes: the role of each of government, the private sector, information institutions, and educational institutions in building knowledge institutions and a knowledge society.