20 Arab countries to take part in 2nd Arab Stamp Exhibition in Dubai from March 5 to 9

The major exhibition coincides with the centenary celebrations of Emirates Post, one of the oldest postal corporations in the region. The event is designed to give a boost to the hobby of stamp-collecting, which is the world's most popular hobby, but is still in its infancy in Arab countries.

The exhibition, which will showcase stamp collections from the Arab world, will have pavilions of postal corporations from 20 Arab countries, nine philatelic associations as well as booths of stamp traders and printers.

"Emirates Post is delighted to bring alive the wonderful world of philately at the 2nd Arab stamp exhibition, with a focus on some great and unique stamps from Arab countries," said Ibrahim Bin Karam, CEO of Emirates Post. "Through this exhibition, we want to expose the people of the world to the exciting hobby of philately which has a large following all over the world."

"Emirates Post's sponsorship of this exhibition marks the start of our centenary celebrations. We have made great strides in the last 100 years, evolving from a small postal organization into a major player on the global postal scene," added Bin Karam. "We are confident this event will provide the right spark to ignite interest in philately among the younger generation."

"The Emirates Philatelic Association has been involved in creating awareness about philately as a hobby that can be pursued by the young and the old alike. Compared to the rest of the world, Arab countries generally lag behind in this interesting activity, and the association is determined to use this forum to encourage young people to collect stamps,"

said Abdulla Mohammed Tayyeb Khoory, president of Emirates Philatelic Association.

The 2nd Arab Stamp Exhibition is affiliated to the Federation Internationale de Philatelie (FIP) and Federation of Inter Asia Philately (FIAP), under whose guidelines and regulations the various prizes and certificates and medals will be awarded to participants.

The exhibitors will come from different Arab countries. Among the countries that have confirmed their participation are Algeria, Syria, Oman, Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Yemen, Jordan and the UAE.

The proposal to hold the 2nd Arab Stamp Exhibition was discussed and endorsed at the telecom sector committee of the Arab League in April 2008 and Emirates Post was entrusted the responsibility of hosting the event as part of its centenary celebrations.

In addition to stamp displays, the event will host lectures on philately as well as fun activities for children and stamp collectors.
The 1st Arab Stamp Exhibition was held at Villagio Shopping Mall, Doha, from 30 January to 3 February, 2008. The exhibition was organised by the Qatar Post and Qatar Philatelic Club.