Minister of Tourism Arts and Culture  Nancy Shukri hopes to translate more writings and books on arts, culture, heritage, and tourism into international languages.

She said it will contribute to captivate international communities' interests to understand Malaysia's cultural plurality and tourist destinations.

“The move can also attract the interest of book lovers or literary tourists to travel to the fascinating places in the country,” she said in a statement today in conjunction with the 2020 National Library (PNM) Book Awards.

Nancy said it was the best forum to introduce excellent books in the local publications list and to lift Malaysia's best works globally, as well as the event that took place online through its PNM Facebook site.

She said the awards also appreciate their commitment to developing national books as well as to improving knowledge and reading culture among Malaysians. 

“The awards are also to encourage the submission of books to PNM as national heritage treasures and catalyst as well as to support the National Creative Industry initiative in line with the Kuala Lumpur as the World Book Capital 2020.

“Based on statistics, the titles of the new books registered under the Deposit of Library Material Act 1986 are18,566 last year, she added.

The awards ceremony included RM3 500 cash, trophy, and certificate of appreciation for each of the 22 winners, including eleven writers and 11 publishers.

These books were submitted for the first time in 2018 and 2019 and published as the key criteria and in accordance with international standards by Malaysian publishers.