Nearly 90 Of Malaysians Are Now Active Readers Says Aaron

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The national unity minister says this is the result of the government’s ongoing policies and initiatives in strengthening the knowledge ecosystem.
National unity minister Aaron Ago Dagang said in 2015, the number of books read every year by Malaysians was 15 but this number had jumped to 24 by 2023. (File pic)PETALING JAYA: Efforts to instil a reading culture among the people seem to have shown results
National unity minister Aaron Ago Dagang said the Reading Profile Study had recorded a significant jump in the reading rate among Malaysians, Bernama reported.
“In 2005, the average citizen read only two books a year. Ten years later, the number jumped to 15 books and in 2023 it increased again to 24 books per year.
“Of that number, an average of 16 books were read in physical form while the other eight books were read online,” he said.
Aaron said the latest study showed that 88.6% of Malaysians were now active readers.
“This is a proud achievement that proves the impact of the government’s ongoing policies and initiatives in strengthening the knowledge ecosystem in the country,” he said.
Meanwhile, Aaron, in a statement, said the one-stop digital platform u-Pustaka under the National Library of Malaysia (PNM) is offering more than one million online reading materials for free to the public.
This is an effort to ensure accessibility to reading materials for all segments of society.
Aaron said through the initiative, the public can access various digital materials, including e-books, e-magazines, e-newspapers, audio books, e-learning and e-journals, anywhere and anytime.
“To date, u-Pustaka has recorded 2,985,170 bibliographic entries with 1,014,356 digital collection titles, as well as providing 22 digital databases for public use.
“Among the databases provided include Overdrive, Alkem Digital Library, Mason Crest, Emerald eBook, JGate, Lawnet, Odilo and MyGuru.
“This makes u-Pustaka a comprehensive, inclusive and easily accessible virtual knowledge store for all Malaysians regardless of background,” he said. - FMT

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