SHARJAH, 28th June, 2017 (WAM) -- Publishers, authors, illustrators and app developers of Arabic books for children and young people now have the opportunity to receive one of the Arab worlds most important children's literature prize, the Etisalat Award for Arabic Childrens Literature, by registering online for the 9th edition on the official website: www.etisalataward.ae.

The Award is organised by the Sharjah-based UAE Board on Books for Young People, UAEBBY, and sponsored by the Etisalat Group.

The deadline for submission this year is 31st August for all the categories: Childrens Book of the Year, Young Adult Book of the Year, Best Text, Best Illustration, Best Production, and Digital Book App of the Year.

The website is replete with information on why the Etisalat Award was conceived, what kind of talent it seeks to recognise, its history and mission, eligibility criteria, and rules of submission. All the conditions that stipulate the Awards exact requirements are also featured on the website.

The competition is open to all international publishers, as long as their works are in Arabic, are first editions, and are designed for children and young people under 18 years of age. The entries should not have previously won any Arab or international prize.

The rationale behind giving prospective participants the option to enter the contest online is to facilitate the submission process in a way that provides the largest number of publishers, authors, illustrators and app developers the opportunity to showcase their work.

The Etisalat Award for Arabic Childrens Literature is worth a total of AED 1,200,000 among six categories. The Childrens Book of the Year is worth AED 300,000, the Young Adult Book of the Year is worth AED 200,000, while the Best Text, Best Illustration, Best Production and Digital Book App of the Year are worth AED 100,000 each.

Additionally, as part of the Warsha programme, which supports and inspires a new generation of writers, illustrators, and publishers, AED 300,000 will be dedicated to workshops for harnessing peoples ability to write and illustrate childrens books.

The Etisalat Award for Arabic Childrens Literature was launched in 2009 by Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Founder and Patron of the UAEBBY, with the aim of promoting a culture of reading and instilling a love of Arabic books among children. It works to honour the creative productions of the best authors, illustrators and publishers in childrens literature and motivate them to produce innovative texts, productions and designs that will result in a greater number of unique and high-quality Arabic children's books.

Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2017.