London, UK (Antara) - The Indonesian National Book Committee's participation in the London Book Fair will assert its position in advanced publishing and the scientific and literary map of the world, Indonesian Ambassador to the UK Rizal Sukma noted.
Being held on Mar 14-16 in Olympia, London, the London Book Fair is the second-biggest international book fair, attended by Indonesian authors and publishers after the Frankfurt Book Fair held last year.
It is the third time that Indonesia is taking part in the book fair, which is being attended by 618 participants as the representatives of 400 publishing and printing companies from over 30 countries.
"Our country's participation in this book fair is strategically important. However, we still lack authors and publishers who produce their works in English. Our productivity remains low as compared to that of the authors from Thailand, the Philippines, and Singapore," Sukma stated here, Tuesday afternoon.
During the three-day fair, Indonesia is showcasing 200 book titles. Hence, Sukma expressed hope that more Indonesian books would be translated to English and be on display in other international book fairs.
Chairperson of the National Book Committee Laura Prinsloo remarked that Indonesia's contribution in international book fairs is in line with the government's program to encourage strategic sectors in the domestic economy, particularly in the publishing industry, as well as to ensure Indonesia's position as a key player in the literary sector in the market of the ASEAN Economic Community.
Some benefits to be gained by participating in international book exhibitions are improved bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the fields of education and culture as well as increased productivity and competitiveness in the international market, so that the skills of Indonesians can be fully developed and be at par with other Asian nations.
"Moreover, Indonesia has been proposed to be the Market Focus country for the London Book Fair in 2019, which means bigger opportunity for a growing presence in the international market," Prinsloo affirmed.
The Indonesian Embassy in London is ready to support the proposal of being the Market Focus country for the London Book Fair in 2019 owing to the success achieved by Indonesia, as a partner country, in last year's Frankfurt Book Fair.(*)
