Minister of Culture and Arts Malika Bendouda officially kicked off the Algiers International Comics Festival (FIBDA) on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at the Riadh El Feth Office in Algiers. She then embarked on a tour of the festival, meeting artists and discovering the various spaces of the 18th edition. Throughout the visit, she was accompanied by FIBDA Commissioner Salim Brahimi.

Upon her arrival, the Minister of Culture began a tour of the festival's various spaces. Moving from one stand to another, she met with artists, publishers and young participants, learning about their creations and discussing their projects and artistic worlds with them.

Ms. Bendouda first visited the areas dedicated to artists, where she spoke with several young creators, asking them about their work and showing interest in the new works and proposals presented for this edition. Algerian, Tunisian, Japanese and Egyptian artists are showcasing their creations to the public and fans of the ninth art.

The Minister then stopped at the area dedicated to Japan, where she viewed the works on display and spoke with participants. She continued her tour to the Techno stand, where she was briefed on a mural created in tribute to the children who died in the fire that broke out at the Mohammadia assisted-care facility, as well as to the children who lost their lives in the recent fires that affected several regions of the country. Attentive to the explanations provided, Malika Bendouda also placed a rose as a gesture of solidarity.

The visit continued in the exhibition area, where several works caught the eye. The Minister notably stopped in front of Le Bagnard borgne by Mohamed Mazari, known by his artist name MAZ. She also discovered works by Congolese artist Jérémie Basingi, Tayeb Arab, Egyptian artist Rasha Abou Al Maati and Tunisian artist Nada Dagdoug, taking the time to learn more about their artistic approaches and the works on display.

Malika Bendouda then continued her tour to the United States stand before stopping at the European Union's EUNIC space. There, she met with the Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Algeria, Jan Černý, with whom she discussed European participation in the festival.

The Minister's tour then took her to the workshops, where children and young people were already engaged in painting and drawing activities. In this particularly lively space, she showed interest in the activities offered to young visitors and learned about the work produced by the participants.

She also visited the Bassamat publishing area before joining the official ceremony marking the opening of the 18th edition of FIBDA.