By Zareef Muzammil
SHAH ALAM, Dec 3 — The 10-day Selangor International Book Fair (SIBF) 2023 has already received an extraordinary response, with over 80,000 visitors recorded in just the first two days.
Its director Zafrullah Aris said although the weather has not been too kind, with rain in the mornings, the festival at the Shah Alam City Council Convention Centre, which started on Friday, has been lively and vibrant.
“Since the first day, we have seen a considerable increase in the number of visitors compared to last year. The weather has not stopped visitors from coming, and this has been a surprise to the organisers.
“We expect more visitors in the coming days and are optimistic that the numbers can reach 300,000 by the end of the fair if this momentum persists,” he said when met today.
Zafrullah said activities being planned for the programme have also been running smoothly and according to schedule, and that no exhibitors have ceased operations despite the weather condition.
SIBF 2023, which runs from December 1-10 from 9am to 9pm, is organised by the Selangor Public Library Corporation (PPAS). It is a continuation of the smaller-scale Selangor Book Fair, which made its debut in 2006.
Now into its second international edition, SIBF 2023 offers various interesting activities, including lucky draws, book sales, and discounts.
Meanwhile, Zafrullah said a special marquee tent has been set up on the ground floor of the event venue to cater to the large number of exhibitors.
The tent currently houses 36 booths involving 24 publishing companies, including Hijanah, Iman, Ilham Books, Tafsir Tok Guru, Latip dan Keluarga ENT, Media Mewah Teguh Sdn Bhd and Tentang Kita.
“We allocated these additional booths on the request of the exhibitors, to allow more of them to be involved in this year’s SIBF.”
