An overview of the annual meeting of the Executive Committee of the ASEAN Book Publishers Association. (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) – The annual meeting of theExecutive Committee of the ASEAN Book Publishers Association (ABPA) kicked off in Ho Chi Minh City on September 15.
The event was a forumfor ABPA members to exchange experiences and propose solutions to strengthencooperation in the publishing industry in the region, especially in the contextthat digital transformation and international integration are becoming moreextensive.
President of the VietnamPublishers Association (VPA) Pham Minh Tuan, who is holding the rotatingpresidency of the ABPA for the 2022-2023 term, said that the VPA hasmet the needs of exchange and cooperation among member countries, becoming achannel for exchanging information, sharing new policies of each country's publishingindustry as well as sharing experiences and ways to promote the development ofreading culture.
He went on to say that ABPA membershave the opportunity to learn from each other. During its presidency, the VPAorganised many activities, aiming at commongoals, especially the goal of maintaining and pushing up peace and securityas well as enhancing regional resilience by promoting political, security,economic and socio-cultural cooperation.
Participants at the meeting held that giventhe current context, the publishing industry faces many difficulties due to thecompetition between books and reading culture with other audio-visual forms andsocial networks, and copyright infringement. Along with solutions to promotereading culture, member countries are taking drastic measures to prevent bookcopyright violations.
At the event, ABPA membersagreed with proposals put forth by the VPA, notably the “One ASEAN” initiative whichpromotes exchanges between publishing units of the member countries, thereby fosteringexperience sharing and copyright exchange in the region and realising the goalof diversifying ASEAN unity.
They consented that the MalaysianPublishing Association will take on the role of ABPA's rotating presidency forthe 2024 - 2025 term.
Someactivities are organised within the framework of the event, including an international book fair on HCM City's BookStreet which features about 100 book titles about President Ho Chi Minh andother Party and State leaders.
ABPA delegates alsoparticipate in sideline activities to better understand Vietnamese cultureand publishing, such as visiting relics, bookstores and HCM’s Book Street.
Foundedin 2005, the ABPA aims to provide a friendly community where ASEAN-basedpublishers and industry partners can share knowledge and experience./.
