A Chinese visitor reads books about Egypt at the Beijing International Book Fair on August 22 (XINHUA)

Over the last few years, Abdelkader Retnani, Director of La Croisée des Chemins Publishing House in Morocco, has become a regular participant of the Beijing International Book Fair, an annual event that takes place in late August in China's capital. 

But this year's event was special for him, because Morocco was celebrated as the guest of honor - the first African country to have this privilege since the creation of the fair in 1986. In addition, the book La Chine et nous: Répondre au second dépassement (China and Us: Responding to the Second Overtaking), already published and distributed in French and Arabic by its publishing house, was purchased for translation and distribution in China. 

"Books about China are very popular in Morocco, because Moroccans are very interested in China," Retnani told ChinAfrica. 

Retnani first took part in the Beijing International Book Fair in 2014. Since then, his publishing house has conducted many exchanges with its Chinese counterparts. Flames and Words, a poetry book translated from Chinese into Arabic by the Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, was originally distributed by his publishing house in Morocco, where it has met with great success. 

The 2,000 copies of the first print of La Chine et nous: Répondre au second dépassement sold out quickly in Morocco, and the second print is now available. 

"I wanted to conclude agreements [with Chinese partners] so that we can better promote China's rich history and so that our Moroccan readers can better appreciate it," he said. 

Rising exports 

Retnani is not alone in trying to cooperate with Chinese publishing houses. At this year's Beijing International Book Fair, which took place on August 22-26, a total of 5,678 copyright agreements were concluded between China and foreign countries, an annual increase of 7.9 percent. Of these, 3,610 were export and partnership contracts, up 11.28 percent year on year, and 2,068 were import-related agreements, up 2.48 percent year on year. 

Both China's copyright exports and imports have been growing in the past years. In 2003, copyright export contracts accounted for only 10 percent of total import contracts. But starting that year, Chinese publishing houses have made great efforts to strengthen exchanges with their foreign counterparts. In recent years, China's copyright exchanges in the international market have grown closer. This is especially apparent when it comes to the growth of exported copyrights (see graph below). 

Books on literature, culture and education are among the most popular. In recent years, books about China's governance have become a new favorite with foreign readers. The book Xi Jinping: The Governance of China is a good example. 

Published by Foreign Languages Press in September 2014, it includes 79 articles, speeches and interviews by Xi Jinping in which he presents new ideas, new points of view and new theses, and answers key theoretical and practical questions about the Communist Party of China (CPC) and China's development between November 15, 2012 and June 13, 2014. 

Former French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin recommends reading the book to better understand China, how it will forge forward on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, how individual interests of the Chinese people are bound to the interests of the Chinese nation by the pursuit of the Chinese dream, and how China will play an increasingly important role in the world. Garth Shelton, Associate Professor of International Relations at University of the Witwatersrand, believes this book paints a picture of the real China, and says one can better understand China's aspirations, dreams and ambition after reading it. 

By November 2017, the book had already been translated into 24 foreign languages and 6.6 million copies had been distributed in more than 160 countries and regions. 

Huang Youyi, Vice President of Translators Association of China and former Vice President of China International Publishing Group, said the demand for books about China's governance is very strong abroad. In May 2016, he met Jean-Marie Cambacérès, President of European and International Affairs Section of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council of France. The latter asked him if he had the French version of China's 13th Five-Year Plan, which was adopted in March that year, adding that he would like to study it to seek cooperation opportunities with China. The French translation was finally published at the end of 2016. 

"Due to the strong demand for documents related to the CPC and Chinese Government, we need to start translating them before the Chinese version is even released," Huang said. 

New market 

In recent years, many Chinese publishing houses have opened branches abroad to better promote cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries. Tangel Publishing Co. Ltd., for example, has partnered with People's Publishing House to create the publisher People & Tangel Publishing House. In 2017, it opened a branch in Morocco. 

"To conduct editorial exchanges, we need to understand the local book market and local customs," said Huang Shuyuan, President of People's Publishing House. 

As a result, People & Tangel Publishing House in Morocco recruited local translators and book sellers. 

In February 2017, People & Tangel Publishing House took part in the Casablanca International Book and Publishing Fair and launched the first Arabic edition of Profile of Tu Youyou. Tu is a Chinese scientist who won China's first Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2015. The event was a great success. 

The publishing house also signed a number of copyright export agreements during the fair. Its book Zhou Enlai: A Great Diplomat includes some chapters on the close relations between Chinese late 

Premier Zhou Enlai and African peoples. Two Egyptian and Moroccan publishers have expressed an interest in these chapters and want to translate them into Arabic. 

"Publishing, printing and distribution of the books are done in Morocco, and we can therefore better understand the demand of Moroccan readers and their responses," said Huang. 

In the future, People & Tangel Publishing House in Morocco plans to strengthen content exchanges with other African countries such as Tunisia and Egypt, according to Huang.

(Comments to liuting@chinafrica.cn)