Colombo, Sept 15 (newsin.asia) – Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, on Friday, launched the Colombo International Book Fair, which is an annual mega book exhibition featuring local and international authors and publishers.
Chairman of Sri Lanka Book Publishers Association, H. Premasiri, speaking at the launch said that over 400 international and local book stalls would be open at the exhibition including a Chinese section featuring books from well known authors in China.
He said 2017 was a year in which Sri Lanka Book Publishers Association and China Book Publishers and Printers Association had further strengthened its relations and he was glad to note that China had opened a cultural center in Colombo.
“Last January, 15 publishers from Sri Lanka participated in a seminar held in China. This year, 4 officials from Sri Lanka participated in the Beijing Book Exhibition,” Premasiri said.
The Chinese stalls were opened with an aim to promote books written by well known Chinese authors among the locals and tourists. Popular books such as ‘Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” was also up for sale at the exhibition.
Special stalls featuring books from Iran, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, India, UK and Japan were also open at the fair.
The Colombo International Book Fair will be held for 10 days and is expected to attracts thousands of visitors including tourists.
This is the 19th year the Book Fair is being held in the island.
