First-timer's view of the London Book Fair
David Ng'ang'a
David Ng'ang'a is former Publishing Manager, Macmillan Kenya Publishers
Ltd and currently studying for an MA in Publishing at Oxford Brookes
University, UK
When I heard that the London International Book
Fair would be forthcoming soon, I was excited. Excited because I had
never had the opportunity to be there. So it was with awe and expectation
that I applied for my badge from their web site. Come the day, and
together with my Oxford Brookes' classmates, Tanzanian Mbonea Mndambi
and Korean Kim Hyungtai, we boarded the London-bound bus outside our
halls of residence.
Changing times
Once inside the Olympia Exhibition Hall, my first priority was
to find the seminar rooms. This was with a view to catching up with
the 'Changing Times, Changing Africa' seminars organized by the Southern
African Book Development Education Trust (SABDET) in conjunction with
the Zimbabwe International Book Fair (ZIBF). This two-part seminar
series was to discuss 'innovative trends and developments in African
writing, publishing and marketing'.
I arrived in time to find Isobel Dixon of South
Africa taking to the floor. Ms Dixon, an established literary agent,
not to mention author in her own right, shared useful experiences
and visions for the industry in Africa. What I picked up from her
is that the past ways of communicating are not the ways of the future,
especially if Africa is to break into the international marketplace.
That African publishers need to be more aggressive
in marketing books came across strongly in the afternoon session concerned
with the book supply chain in Africa, and chaired by Oluronke Orimalade,
a bookseller from Nigeria and chair of the Pan-African Booksellers'
Association. The session profiled Uganda and Malawi, with a view to
establishing the effects of the Textbook Revolving Fund (TRF) and the
Universal Primary Education project in Uganda on reading, book buying
and the respective industries. Speakers were Justus Mugaju, Consulting/Associate
Editor of Fountain Publishers in Uganda, and Bernard Bagenda, Senior
Principal Librarian of Uganda Public Libraries Board, as well as James
Ng'ombe, the Managing Director of Jhango Heinemann in Malawi. Notably
the two projects are aimed at liberalizing and expanding book distribution
in the two countries.
Uganda has witnessed a tremendous growth in book
buying, moving from hardly any bookseller network in the mid-1980s to
a respectable book industry at the dawn of the millennium. Started in
1988, Fountain Publishers has grown to be one of the leading publishers
in the East African region. Its success dispels the myth that local
publishers cannot effectively compete with multinationals. Citing the
tendency of potential readers to prefer bars, television and mobile
phones, as epitomized by Makerere University students, Mugaju called
on book businesspeople to boost the reading link in the book chain to
overcome these external forces.
The TRF has not only supported textbook buying,
it is also contributing to strengthening the reading culture in Malawi;
there is an increase in children's visits to libraries over the years.
However, DANIDA will not fund the project from this year, posing a sustainability
challenge to the project. Nonetheless, signs are that Parent-Teacher
Associations have the will to continue buying books for schools. There
was a consensus that book projects should outlive donor support for
book industries in Africa to be competitive in the international marketplace.
After discussing the heavy matters of the day,
delegates attended the ZIBF-sponsored reception. I cannot tell you about
that one though as I was as busy as the Londoners finding the right
tubes to catch to my cousin's place before it was dark. Statistics show
that 70 per cent of Londoners do not know the place they are going to,
and they do not get lost. Actually, I did get lost twice and nobody
knew.
Showtime
I arrived at Olympia at 11.00 a.m. the following morning, this time
just to sample the exhibitions. What struck me was the sheer size of
the fair. I am told that this year's event was bigger than last year's,
and it has been growing tremendously since its inception. Unlike October's
Frankfurt Book Fair that was affected by September 11, there was a big
presence of American, European and Asian publishers and publisher associations
(PAs). Are Africa's book business people listening? If you cannot make
it, please do send your PAs, BSA (Book Sellers Associations), or even
APNET.
The fête was simply dazzling. There were
gigantic stands by HarperCollins and Macmillan, the well-designed
Dorling Kindersley stand and the tech-savvy Whitaker Information Services.
Sub-rights and distribution deals as well as author-agent-editor negotiations
were finalized. This premier showcase offers unlimited opportunities
for African publishers - not only in English-speaking countries, but
in the entire continent. [end] [BPN, no 30, 2002,
pp 10-11.]
^^Back
to top
Return
to table of contents for BPN Newsletter 30, 2002>>