TEHRAN-Iran is participating in the 43rd Indonesia International Book Fair (IIBF) and this is a positive step in the cultural relations between Iran and Indonesia, Iran ambassador to Indonesia said while visiting Iran stand at the fair on Wednesday.

“The IIBF is smaller compared to the Tehran International Book Fair,” Mohammad Boroujerdi said adding that Iran has a regional brand in the field of book fairs, which provides an opportunity for cooperation between the two countries in the field of publishing and books, SNN reported on Friday.

“The key point is that in order to cooperate with Indonesia, we must translate our books to Indonesian language, and if doing so, we will definitely have more audiences in Indonesia as the largest Islamic country and the fourth most populous country in the world,” he noted.

“The Indonesian language is not only limited to this country, but more than 400 million people in the world speak Indonesian, and entering Indonesia is entering the ASEAN region, which has a population of about 800 million people. We can look at this region as an 800-million book market,” the ambassador stressed.

Boroujerdi expressed hope that Indonesia will attend the Tehran International Book Fair as the Guest of Honor in the future editions.

Iran ‎Book and Literature House represents Iran’s publishing industry at the fair, presenting over 350 titles on various subjects of Iranology, religion, the Sacred Defense, classic and contemporary Persian literature, children and young adults, and titles written by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The displayed Iranian books are mostly in English, Arabic and some have been translated into Indonesian as well.

Opened on September 27, the 43rd Indonesia International Book Fair is underway at the Indonesia Convention Exhibition (ICE) BSD City, Tangerang Regency. A total of 150 publishers from Indonesia and over 25 countries including have attended the fair that will conclude on October 1.

This year’s event carries the tagline “Now is the Time to Read”. South Korea is the Guest of Honor country at IIBF 2023.

In addition to Iran and South Korea, countries such as China, Turkey, Thailand and the UAE have presented their latest publications at the exhibition.

It was initially established in 1980 under the name of the Indonesia Book Fair. To reach a bigger audience, in 2014 Indonesia Book Fair became Indonesia International Book Fair.

An annual book exhibition organized by the Indonesian Publishers Association, the IIBF is a meeting point, a strategic and prestigious event for exhibitors to promote literature, art, culture, and all other creative content, through rights licensing and other means of cooperation. IIBF invites more than 100 speakers and holds 50 series of events throughout the fair.

IIBF is a hybrid book fair. It is a mix of B to B and B to C book fair, and it is enriched by some cultural and educational programs. IIBF helps participants to meet their goals and to meet potential business partners as Indonesia is the largest market of books and literature in South East Asia.

SS/SAB