Scheduled for August 27-30 this year, Ghana’s International Book Fair is now officially cancelled due to the coronavirus threat, and is expected to return August 26-29 2021.

Chairman of the Ghana International Book Fair, Asare Konadu Yamoah, issued a statement this week explaining that the steady growth of the coronavirus in Ghana left them no choice.

We have, therefore, taken the difficult decision to wait no further but act now to enable both indigenous and international exhibitors and visitors as well as the general public to rethink their plans.

Summarising the statement, News Ghana said the GIBF organisers hope to hold a National Book Exhibition in Accra and two other satellite regional book fairs in Kumasi and Koforidua within the last quarter of the year.

As this post goes live the Ghana International Book Fair site has yet to be updated with the cancellation detail.

With 1,671 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 16 dead Ghana, a country of 31 million people, is so far faring much better than many other countries, and it is to the enormous credit of the event organisers that they are taking a firm position now rather than drag out the uncertainty as happened with the London Book Fair and Book Expo America.