The 2016 Taipei International Book Exhibition kicked off on Tuesday. The book fair, with Hungary as the theme country, is taking place at the Taipei World Trade Center and will last through Sunday.
President Ma Ying-jeou attended the opening ceremony and presented NT$100,000 worth of awards to the winner of the Taipei International Book Exhibition Prize.
In his opening address, President Ma said Taiwan has had close ties with the theme country Hungary over the past few years. He also spoke about the latest reading trends.
"We have publications in 40,000 categories," said Ma. "Among them, more than 2,000 are electronic books. This is a trend in recent years. We believe there will be more of them this year. More people will be able enjoy reading in digital forms. I know the culture ministry has been promoting reading in 61 independent bookstores around the country. We recognize their efforts.”
The book fair presents works from 66 countries and 626 publishers, with over 1,700 booths to visit.