DUBAI, 2nd October, 2026 (WAM) -- The third edition of the Reading for Pleasure Caravan Conference has concluded following four days of keynote addresses, panel discussions, workshops and practical sessions across Dubai, Al Ain and Abu Dhabi, bringing together about 120 local and international speakers and more than 2,000 parents, teachers, librarians and educators.
Organised by the Emirates Literature Foundation, the conference took on a new mobile ‘caravan’ format this year, travelling between four venues and exploring the role of reading in developing children’s learning, wellbeing, imagination and lifelong engagement with books.
The conference travelled from the Museum of the Future and Zayed University in Dubai to United Arab Emirates University in Al Ain and Higher Colleges of Technology in Abu Dhabi.
Now in its third edition, the conference forms part of the Foundation’s wider Reading for Pleasure initiative, a five-year pilot programme launched in 2023 to encourage children to read regularly for enjoyment in both Arabic and English, outside the pressures of academic assessment. The programme currently works with six schools in Dubai.
Isobel Abulhoul OBE, Founder, Advisor and Member of the Board of Trustees of the Emirates Literature Foundation, said, “My life’s mission, and the purpose behind creating the Emirates Literature Foundation, has always been to put a book into the hands of a child and allow them to discover the joy of reading."
The opening day recognised the six schools participating in the Reading for Pleasure pilot programme through the Reading for Pleasure Awards, celebrating the work being undertaken by schools to create stronger reading cultures for their students.
The conference then travelled to Zayed University for a day dedicated to Arabic Language and Bilingualism, followed by a day at United Arab Emirates University in Al Ain exploring Reading in Family and Community. The final day, hosted at Higher Colleges of Technology’s Baniyas Campus in Abu Dhabi, focused on Reading in Early Years.
Across the four days, speakers examined the latest research and practical approaches to reading, with sessions addressing topics including Reading on the Spectrum, An Overview of Policies on Reading in Arabic, How the Brain Reads, and Overstimulated and Under-Imaginative: What’s Happening to Our Children’s Reading Brains?
Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation, said, “Reading for pleasure gives children the freedom to imagine possibilities beyond what they already know, while developing the habits of learning that will serve them throughout their lives. Initiatives such as Reading for Pleasure play an important role in building a generation that is curious, adaptable and ready to shape the future.”