A New Chapter

By+Wang+Hairong

Although still about a month away from the onset of the coldest spell in Beijings winter， late November mornings are fairly chilly. Yet the prospect of low temperatures did not dampen Diana Olenjas enthusiasm and excitement about visiting Beijing.

Shortly after daybreak on November 27， she arrived at the Diaoyutai State Guest House. As the Kenya Literature Bureaus public relations manager， she came to sign an agreement on co-publishing Xi Jinping： The Governance of China （Volume II）.

“We are going to translate the book into Kiswahili and publish it in Kenya，” she told Beijing Review. Kiswahili is one of the most widely used languages in Africa， spoken by more than 50 million people in countries such as Kenya， Tanzania and Zambia.

On that day， Foreign Languages Press， a publishing house under the China International Publishing Group （CIPG）， signed agreements on co-publishing the book with 16 publishing organizations from 16 countries： Italy， Poland， Ukraine， Albania， Romania， Kenya， Tajikistan， Viet Nam， Pakistan， Bangladesh， Cambodia， Laos， Mongolia， Nepal， Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

All the publishers are influential and wellknown in their home countries， and all took part in translating and publishing the fi rst volume of the book， said Zhang Fuhai， President of CIPG.

The first volume， published in September 2014， is now available in 24 languages and 27 editions and has sold more than 6.6 million copies worldwide.

“CIPG is ready to work closely with our overseas partners in introducing this great work to the world，” Zhang said at the agreementsigning ceremony.

A seminal book

The book， published in Chinese and English on November 7， is hailed as an authoritative work on Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. The Thought was established as a new component of the guide for action of the Communist Party of China （CPC） at the 19th CPC National Congress， which concluded in Beijing in late October.

The book collects 99 of Xis spoken and written works from August 2014 to September of this year， arranged into 17 sections by topic.

“It is a vivid account of the great endeavor of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core in leading the Party and the Chinese people to uphold and develop social- ism with Chinese characteristics，” Zhang said.

“It also provides an insight into Xis charisma and personality， opening a new window for Chinese and foreign readers to better understand Xis beliefs and the Party，” he added.endprint