Publish more books, says DPM

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian book publishers must raise their output to match the average publication to population ratio in developed countries.

This was needed to spur the reading habit and develop the publishing industry, in line with Malaysia’s aim to become a high-income economy in 2020, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (pic).

The country’s publishers produce fewer than 20,000 titles per year – below the average of 1,000 titles per million population in deve­loped countries, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.

With Malaysia’s population currently at 31.1 million according to the Department of Statistics, this would mean local publishers should publish at least 31,100 titles annually to match the ratio in developed countries.

“I will discuss with the Prime Minister to look into the possibility of allocating RM2mil for the National Book Award next year, but on condition that our publishers can raise the number of new titles to match the 1% average in developed countries,” he said in his speech at the National Book Award ceremony at the Putra World Trade Centre here yesterday.

The publishers, he said, must aim high so that by the year 2057, when the 100th anniversary of Merdeka is celebrated, Malaysia would have many internationally recognised authors and film producers and even Nobel Prize winners.

The Home Minister said the low output of Malaysian publishers should not be blamed on soft market demand alone.

Other factors which must be considered are whether books are affordable and the quality of the works being produced.

Dr Ahmad Zahid in his speech thanked Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka for its offer to publish his PhD research, which is on media coverage on five successive Malaysian ­general elections.

He said some of his findings, however, might have been overtaken by the rapid change brought by new technologies that had emerged in recent years.

These include e-books and social media, whose impact publishers must be able to adapt to in order to stay relevant.

The Deputy Prime Minister later presented the awards to the recipients of the National Book Award.

Among the winners this year are Tan Sri Professor Dr Syed Muhammad Naquib ­al-Attas, who won the Tokoh Buku Negara Award, and Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Khoo Kay Kim, who won the Tokoh Sejarawan award.

Also taking place at the PWTC are the Malaysian Book Expo and a National Book Conference. Both events end on Sunday.