CAIRO, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- A China-Egypt civilization roundtable dialogue and a book donation ceremony were held Wednesday at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
During the event, officials from relevant Chinese departments presented catalogues of selected books to the Egyptian Publishers Association, the Chinese Language Department at Ain Shams University, the Faculty of Languages at Suez Canal University, and the Chinese Language Department at Al-Azhar University.
Around 70 representatives from the cultural, academic and publishing sectors in China and Egypt attended the event, including Essam Sharaf, former Egyptian prime minister, Ge Jianxiong, senior professor at Fudan University and director of the university library at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, as well as representatives of the Grand Egyptian Museum.
The event was organized by China National Publications Import and Export (Group) Co., Ltd.
In his speech, Sharaf said the ancient Silk Road was not merely a trade route, but also a path connecting ideas and civilizations.
The exchange of books is not merely about sharing publications but about opening windows into each other's world, he said. "When a book travels from one civilization to another, it transforms knowledge into dialogue."
Sharaf expressed hope that the book donation ceremony would mark the beginning of sustained exchanges and encouraged young people from both countries to better understand each other through direct interaction.
For his part, Ge said books are the most universal and important medium for cultural exchanges, while libraries are the most fundamental channels and bases for such exchanges.
Comprehensive and accurate mutual understanding is a prerequisite for mutual learning among civilizations, he noted, adding that differences should be respected while seeking common ground, and that the artificial intelligence era has created better conditions to achieve that.
The book donation comprised 200 copies of 32 titles, covering archaeology and museum studies, literary classics, contemporary culture and other categories.
Faried Zahran, president of the Egyptian Publishers Association, expressed gratitude on behalf of the recipients. He hoped the event would serve as a starting point for stronger publishing cooperation with the Chinese side, as well as further academic exchanges and publishing cooperation with Chinese partners.
"I believe such activities are important steps toward strengthening Egypt-China relations as well as broader China-Arab ties," Zahran told Xinhua, emphasizing the need for direct and constructive cooperation between Egyptian and Chinese publishers.
Ahead of the book donation ceremony, a roundtable dialogue was held under the theme "Inheritance and Innovation in Exchanges Between Chinese and Egyptian Civilizations." ■