Jeddah Literary Club comes a long way

The Jeddah Literary Cultural Club celebrated its 40th anniversary here on Thursday.
Among the dignitaries present were Prince Nawaf bin Faisal bin Fahd, president of the youth welfare organization in the Ministry of Youth and Sport, Abdul Aziz Khoja, minister of culture and information, and Abdullah Al-Salami, president of the club.
Several artists displayed their work in calligraphy, collections of literary documents and pictures documenting the club's history. Prince Nawaf also launched the club's website.
Al-Salami said Prince Nawaf's father, Prince Faisal bin Fahd, came up with the idea to start the club. “Prince Faisal joined forces with professors Mohammad Hassan Awad and Zia Aziz Zia, two brilliant and ambitious writers. They played a leading role in the field of culture and literature, and in 1975 established the Jeddah Literary Cultural Club,” he said.
He said the club has published a great deal of Arabic literature and organized several workshops and events.
Khoja said the club had developed significantly because Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah had given it SR10 million. The club now has many members in the Kingdom and from abroad.
“The celebration of the 40th anniversary of the first literary club in the Kingdom increases its moral responsibility to each writer." Khoja said the club plays a leading role in developing national unity.
Prince Nawaf congratulated the club for its success and its members for their hard work over the past 40 years and commended the club's output of literature and its help in building the confidence of Saudi writers.