Rabat’s Littératures itinérantes brings women writers closer to readers
The 10-11 October edition gathered thirty women writers under Le monde écrit par elles, with a children’s reading space.
The seventh Littératures itinérantes festival took place at Morocco’s National Library in Rabat on 10 and 11 October 2026. Thirty women writers gathered under the theme Le monde écrit par elles. Hespress’s report describes an outdoor bookshop and direct conversations with the public.
Founder Nadia Essalmi presents that contact as a way to encourage reading, including among people who are not already regular readers. This edition focused on women’s voices and different writing journeys. That is the organiser’s intention, not an independently measured effect on reading habits.
A mobile library also offered books, stories and activities to children accompanying their families. Fatima Sekkak, who ran the space and was interviewed by Hespress, described books in Arabic and French. Adding English-language books was a future plan, not an existing service.
The approach makes room for conversation and discovery as a family. Meeting a writer or browsing a book can open a door; building a habit requires regular access to books. The festival has ended. This account reviews its approach without announcing new opening hours or unverified attendance figures.