The Mahmoud Kahil Prize, administered in Beirut by the American University of Beirut (AUB), joins CairoComix this year. The festival hosts its eleventh edition from November 13-15, 2026 at the Mahmoud Mokhtar Cultural Centre in the Gezira district of Cairo. An exhibition of the participating works and an award ceremony are included in the program.
For readers in Egypt, access to the festival is free. Opera Metro Station serves the place. For three days, the meeting brings together authors, publishers and lovers of Arab and international comics.
Mahmoud Kahil Prize in Cairo
The Rada and Mutaz Sawaf Center for Studies on AUB’s Arab Comics organizes this annual award. It distinguishes several forms of creation: cartoon, press drawing, illustration and illustration of children’s books. Its perimeter thus exceeds the only comic book album.
As early as 18 August, AUB announced that the winners of the eleventh edition would be celebrated in CairoComix in November. The university stated that this appointment, usually scheduled for April, had been postponed because of the war. The presence of the prize in Cairo is therefore part of a reorganized calendar, not in the creation of a new distinction.
Workshops, publishers and independent authors
The announced program includes three daily workshops, meetings and signatures. Comic Souk brings together publishers, while a dedicated space, India Square, hosts independent creation. The main exhibition presents the work of the Mahmoud Kahil Prize participants.
Created in 2015, CairoComix devotes its annual meeting to various comic book practices in Egypt and the region. The 9th Art organization wears this edition. The festival market also includes bookstores and creators who publish outside traditional editorial channels.
The AUB centre is among the supporters announced, alongside Tosh Fesh, Pro Helvetia, the French Institute in Cairo and the German Embassy in Egypt. The Mahmoud Mokhtar Centre and the plastic arts sector of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture are partners.
An equally distinguished editorial work
The prize is accompanied by an editorial production. In August, AUB announced four international awards for the book and posters of its tenth edition. Tarek Atrissi had designed the graphics; Lina Ghaibeh had written and edited. These distinctions included typographical drawing, lettering and book design.
In Cairo, the public will be able to discover the works associated with the next edition. The festival continues until Sunday 15 November at the Mahmoud Mokhtar centre, with a free entrance.
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