AdminPerbadanan Kota Buku (PKB) gathered nearly 1,000 publishing industry stakeholders from across Malaysia at the Malam Kota Buku 2025 gala on Dec 19, underscoring a renewed national push to strengthen the book ecosystem, cultivate a culture of reading, and advance the Malaysia MADANI vision of a knowledgeable society.
Held as the industry’s most inclusive and prestigious night of recognition, the gala brought together publishers, educators, community leaders and strategic partners in a single national platform. Beyond celebration, the event set out clear signals on policy direction, digital transformation and cross-sector collaboration needed to future-proof Malaysia’s publishing and reading landscape.
National stage for books and publishing future
Malam Kota Buku 2025 featured the presentation of the Kota Buku Awards, the unveiling of PKB’s strategic directions for the industry, and a keynote address by Minister of Education YB Fadhlina Sidek. The minister described the gala as a concrete step in positioning Malaysia as a nation of readers, while also serving as a national stage that celebrates books and charts the future course of the country’s publishing industry.
By convening stakeholders from across the value chain, the event reinforced its role as a bridge between education policy, reading culture and the creative economy. Recognition was extended not only to publishers and industry players, but also to schools, reading communities and strategic partners, reflecting a whole-ecosystem approach to strengthening literacy and access to knowledge.
This inclusive framing, organisers said, is essential to ensure that reading promotion does not remain confined to urban centres or commercial players, but reaches communities nationwide.
Awards spotlight innovation and inclusive access
Among the key accolades presented were the Kota Buku Awards for outstanding industry players, alongside recognition for Mini Kota Buku initiatives that expand access to reading materials in schools across the country, including in Sabah and Sarawak. These initiatives were highlighted as practical interventions that bring books closer to students, particularly in underserved areas.
A major highlight of the evening was the VIP Buyers Award 2025, which honours effective and innovative use of the School Per Capita Grant through PKB’s Book Capital digital platform. Sekolah Kebangsaan Inarad from Sabah emerged as the champion, recognised for its active engagement and strategic purchasing of reading materials.
The school’s achievement was cited as evidence of how a digital-first approach can empower rural schools to make informed decisions, optimise public funds and improve access to quality reading resources, regardless of geography.
Digital infrastructure drives policy delivery
The gala also served to spotlight PKB’s broader role as an agency under the Ministry of Education, particularly in developing infrastructure and implementing structured reading programmes nationwide. In her address, the minister acknowledged PKB as a strategic partner that not only organises physical programmes, but also builds essential digital book infrastructure to execute government initiatives in an “orderly, transparent, and effective” manner, ensuring that access to knowledge is not constrained by distance.
PKB’s digital credentials were further reinforced by the success of its Book Capital platform, which recently received recognition from ASEAN Records as the “First Unified Digital Book City Platform”. The platform also set a regional benchmark as the fastest-growing of its kind, reaching one million users within just 10 months. The ASEAN Records certificate was presented to YB Fadhlina Sidek on behalf of PKB.
Through Malam Kota Buku 2025, PKB reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening the national publishing industry through an inclusive, policy-driven and digital-first approach. The agency’s message was clear: sustainable and equitable access to knowledge remains central to Malaysia’s ambition of building a resilient, informed and future-ready society.
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