Thailand

Our History

The Thai Section of IBBY was first founded in 1979 by a group of lecturers at Srinakarinwirot University under the name of "The Children's Reading Development Association"(CREDA). A project of the section was the Portable Library Project of Thailand, which won the IBBY-ASAHI Reading Promotion Award in 1989. The Section lost its membership in 1999, but was re-established in 2001 under the "Books for Children Foundation" with the support of the Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand (PUBAT).

On August 12, 2021, Thailand’s representation to IBBY shifted to the ThaiBBY Foundation. ThaiBBY’s main mission is to support Thailand’s presence in the international book market and sustain Thailand’s participation in international and regional organizations involved in children’s book publishing.

ThaiBBY has been active in supporting libraries for street children, for children in detention, for children in rural areas and for children with disabilities.  ThaiBBY has been the lead organizer of the "Book Festival for Young People" book fair held each July and organizing children's activities for National and International Book Fair. ThaiBBY also participates in IBBY international activities, including: the IBBY Honour List, ICBD; producing the first ThaiBBY ICBD posters and distributing them to schools and libraries in Thailand. In 2003 ThaiBBY initiated the Bookstart project in Thailand and has tri-annually published the ThaiBBY Journal; organized a reading promotion program called “Tales in the Garden”, every Saturday from December 2003 to February 2004; publishing the first "Twin Book" - a picture book in Braille in March 2005; co-operating with other NGOs and international partners to help children affected by the 2005 Tsunami; and organizing seminars and training for writers, illustrators, translators of children's books and storytelling for teachers.

Our Vision

The current leadership of ThaiBBY intends to build upon its successful track record by seeking more opportunities to connect local stakeholders in the children’s book industry with international exposure, resources, and assistance.  As a first step, ThaiBBY is currently partnering with the Singapore Book Council and the AFCC to host a series of virtual and in-person book fairs in Thailand, showcasing Thai and Singaporean creators.